Guideline for the laboratory diagnosis of functional iron deficiency

Patients with aggressive non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) who relapse after autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) have a poor prognosis. Additional therapy is often poorly tolerated, and new treatment modalities are needed. This efficacy and safety study was a retrospective analysis of two phase II trials (NHL‐002 and NHL‐003) that studied single‐agent lenalidomide in patients with relapsed/refractory aggressive NHL with prior (n = 87) compared with no prior ASCT (n = 179). The overall response rate in the ASCT group was 39% 14% complete response (CR)], including 29% in patients with diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma, 63% in mantle cell lymphoma, and 60% in transformed lymphoma. The timing of transplant relative to receiving lenalidomide had no effect on outcomes. Median progression‐free survival for the ASCT group was 3·7 months (16·9 months for patients in CR; 7·3 months for partial responders) at a median 12·5‐month follow‐up. Median response duration was 7·9 months. Regardless of prior ASCT, lenalidomide monotherapy was efficacious in heavily pretreated patients with aggressive, relapsed/refractory NHL, with a safety profile that was consistent with prior studies of single‐agent lenalidomide.