Successful salvage therapy of continuous low-dose irinotecan for a patient with relapsed and refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma

A 46-year-old man with relapsed and refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma after salvage therapy (EPOCH and ESHAP regimens) was treated with continuous low-dose CPT-11 (irinotecan hydrochloride) at 30 mg/day (20 mg/m2/day) for three consecutive days every week. The patient's general condition and both LDH and CRP, tumor related markers, improved dramatically. Complete remission was achieved after a 10-week cycle of therapy without severe adverse effects. Unfortunately, the lymphoma relapsed after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, low-dose CPT-11 therapy was used again to palliate tumor symptoms for 12 months. This therapy may be a useful salvage and palliative chemotherapy for relapsed and refractory lymphoma.