Hodgkin Lymphoma (HL) a success story over 50 years

Abstract

Hodgkin Lymphoma (HL) is a rare B-origin lymphoma that accounts for approximately 10% of all lymphomas. HL is made up of two different entities: on the one hand, the Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma (CHL), consisting of the histological forms of predominantly lymphocytic, nodular sclerosis, mixed cellularity and lymphocytic depletion and, on the other, the Nodular Lymphocyte-Predominant Hodgkin Lymphoma (NLPHL). During the last 50 years, we have seen a move from a monovalent therapy – with a 5-10% survival probability at 5 years – to a combination chemotherapy and a therapeutic approach aimed at reducing the treatment toxicity while maintaining a high probability of cure even in advanced cases. The curative role of radiotherapy in patients with localized Hodgkin’s lymphomas has been observed for about a century. New agents such as Brentuximab and PD-1 antibodies have recently proven to be efficient in recurrent cases and their incorporation to the first line is being studied. Likewise, the role of autologous haematopoietic stem cell transplantation after salvage chemotherapy in first relapse and the role of allogeneic transplantation and the use of anti-CD30 CAR T-cell therapy in relapsed or refractory Hodgkin’s lymphoma are discussed.