EVA treatment for recurrent or unresponsive Hodgkin's disease

Nineteen patients with recurrent or unresponsive Hodgkin's disease who had previously received combination chemotherapy comprising mustine or chlorambucil with vinblastine, prednisolone and procarbazine (MVPP or ChlVPP), were treated with a combination of etoposide, vincristine and adriamycin (EVA). Clinical remission (complete, CR + good partial, GPR) was achieved in eleven of the nineteen patients (58%). The remission rate was similar for patients who had previously responded well to chemotherapy and for those who had previously been poorly responsive. Six patients have relapsed between 3 and 5 months after completion of therapy. The remainder continue in remission, two without further therapy at 7 and 8 months, respectively, and three having had additional radiotherapy while in remission. Myelosuppression was the most important toxicity, but in general this was manageable. These results suggest that EVA may be non-cross-resistant with MVPP and ChlVPP and that it is of potential value in combination chemotherapy for previously untreated patients, even though it is unlikely to be curative when treatment with either MVPP or ChlVPP has failed.