Response Duration During Treatment of Patients with Follicular Lymphoma

<b>Background/Objective</b>: It is known that the duration of response to treatment in patients with follicular lymphoma decreases with advancing lines of treatment. Our current study investigated progression-free survival in patients with follicular lymphoma undergoing different lines of treatment, aiming to understand the factors influencing treatment response and outcomes. <b>Methods</b>: We retrospectively analyzed data from follicular lymphoma patients treated at the University of Debrecen between 2009 and 2023. We collected comprehensive data on patient demographics, disease characteristics, treatment regimens, and outcomes. <b>Results</b>: The analysis included 161 patients with follicular lymphoma. The median follow-up for first-line patients was 51 months (range, 3-204), with a median age of 56 years (range, 25-85). The duration of progression-free survival for the first and second lines coincided, while survival in the third line was indeed an 'unmet medical need'. Factors that influenced the outcome of the first-line treatment of follicular lymphoma patients have been published before by our working group. A univariate analysis of factors that may have influenced the outcome of second-line treatment was performed. A remarkable impact was found in patients undergoing autologous stem cell transplantations and medium-dose treatment. Another important factor was the presence of B-symptoms at the start of second-line treatment. <b>Conclusions</b>: Our study confirmed the interesting coincidence of the first- and second-line duration of response in follicular lymphoma patients, which can be explained with the high number of patients undergoing stem cell transplantation and medium-dose treatment in the second line.