Volume 206, Issue 3 pp. 907-918
ORIGINAL PAPER

Should adolescents and young adults with Hodgkin lymphoma be treated as children or adults?

Lucille Lew-Derivry

Corresponding Author

Lucille Lew-Derivry

Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Department, Sorbonne University APHP, A.Trousseau Hospital, Paris, France

Correspondence

Lucille Lew-Derivry, Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Department, Sorbonne University APHP, A.Trousseau Hospital, Paris, France.

Email: [email protected]

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Florian Chevillon

Florian Chevillon

Adolescent and Young Adults Hematology Department, St Louis Hospital, Paris, France

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Pauline Brice

Pauline Brice

Hemato-Oncology Department, St Louis Hospital, Paris, France

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Camille Bigenwald

Camille Bigenwald

Hematology Department, Gustave Roussy Institute, Villejuif, France

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Judith Landman-Parker

Judith Landman-Parker

Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Department, Sorbonne University APHP, A.Trousseau Hospital, Paris, France

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Thierry Leblanc

Thierry Leblanc

Pediatric Hematology and Immunology Department, Robert-Debré Hospital and Université Paris-Cité Paris, Paris, France

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Nicolas Boissel

Nicolas Boissel

Adolescent and Young Adults Hematology Department, St Louis Hospital, Paris, France

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Aurélie Cabannes-Hamy

Aurélie Cabannes-Hamy

Hematology Department, Versailles Hospital, Le Chesnay, France

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First published: 05 January 2025

Summary

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is one of the most common cancers in adolescents and young adults (AYA). Paediatric and adult therapeutic strategies diverge while sharing the common objective: maintaining optimal efficacy with less long-term toxicity. However, few studies have compared the outcome of AYA treated according to one or the other approaches. Among the 148 patients aged 15–25 years, treated at Saint-Louis Hospital for newly diagnosed HL between 2012 and 2018, 71 were treated according to an adult protocol and 77 were treated according to a paediatric one. The 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) were, respectively, 100% and 85%, with no significant difference between treatment groups (85% in paediatric vs. 86% in adult, p = 0.7). Overall, the 5-year PFS was 100% for early favourable stages and 78% for advanced stages. A higher risk of short-term steroid and vincristine-related toxicities was observed in paediatric regimen, whereas a higher risk of late toxicities was expected in adult regimen, due to higher anthracyclines, procarbazine, bleomycin and radiotherapy exposure. These results confirm the excellent outcome of AYA patients with HL, whatever the treatment strategies. They justify a tailor-made therapeutic decision and highlight the importance of managing AYA patients in dedicated units with trained professionals.

Graphical Abstract

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is one of the most common cancers in adolescents and young adults (AYA) yet no treatment specifically tailored to this age group currently exists. This study compared 148 patients aged 15 to 25 treated at Saint-Louis Hospital between 2012 and 2018, using either pediatric or adult protocols. A higher risk of short-term steroid and vincristine-related toxicities was observed in pediatric regimen, whereas a higher risk of late toxicities was expected in adult regimen, due to higher anthracyclines, procarbazine, bleomycin and radiotherapy exposure. The 5-year overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) rates were 100% and 85%, respectively, with no significant difference between the two approaches. These findings emphasize the importance of personalized care in specialized units to optimize treatment outcomes while minimizing short- and long-term toxicities. [Correction added on 15 April 2025, after first online publication: The graphical abstract was corrected in this version.]

CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Data available on request.

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