Intermediate-dose cytarabine is an effective therapy for adults with non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis

Non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis, including Erdheim-Chester disease (ECD), Rosai-Dorfman disease (RDD), indeterminate cell histiocytosis (ICH), and unclassified histiocytosis, is a rare disorder lacking a standard treatment strategy. We report our experience using intermediate-dose cytarabine as the first or subsequent therapy in non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis.

Nine ECD patients, 5 RDD patients, 1 ICH patient and 1 unclassified histiocytosis patient were enrolled. Intermediate-dose cytarabine therapy was administered as 0.5-1.0 g/m² of intravenous cytarabine every 12 h for 3 days every 5 weeks. The median age at cytarabine initiation was 47.5 years (range 18-70 years). The median number of cycles of cytarabine administered was 5.5 (range 2-6). The overall response rate (ORR) was 87.5% in the overall cohort, including 12.5% with complete response and 75.0% with partial response. One patient experienced disease recurrence 19 months after cytarabine therapy. The median follow-up duration for the entire cohort was 15.5 months (range 6-68 months). The estimated 2-year progression-free survival and overall survival rates were 85.6% and 92.3%, respectively. The most common toxicity was haematological adverse events, including grade 4 neutropenia and grade 3-4 thrombocytopenia. No treatment-related deaths occurred.

Intermediate-dose cytarabine is an efficient treatment option for non-Langerhans cell histiocytosis patients, especially for those with CNS involvement.