Key clinical point: The addition of rituximab to chemotherapy increased the risk for prolonged hypogammaglobulinemia in children with high-risk mature B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL); however, severe infections after therapy completion were rare.
Major finding: At 1 year after therapy commencement, the chemotherapy+rituximab vs chemotherapy arm had a significantly higher proportion of children with low immunoglobulin G levels (55% vs 25%; odds ratio 3.64; P = .0003). The occurrence of grade ≥3 nonhematologic adverse events after 1 month of therapy completion was rare.
Study details: This secondary analysis of the Inter-B-NHL-Ritux 2010 trial included children (6 months-18 years) with high-risk mature B-NHL who were randomly (n = 289) or nonrandomly (n = 132) assigned to receive either chemotherapy alone or chemotherapy+rituximab.
Disclosures: The Inter-B-NHL-Ritux 2010 trial was supported by F Hoffmann-La Roche and others, and this study was funded by the National Cancer Institute of the US National Institutes of Health. Some authors reported ties with F Hoffmann-La Roche or other sources.
Source: Alexander S et al for the Children's Oncology Group and the European Intergroup for Childhood Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Effect of rituximab on immune status in children with mature B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma: A prespecified secondary analysis of the Inter-B-NHL Ritux 2010 trial. Lancet Haematol. 2023 (Apr 21). Doi: 10.1016/S2352-3026(23)00062-5