Site of relapse after chemotherapy alone for stage I and II Hodgkin's disease

BackgroundShort course chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy is a standard treatment for early Hodgkin's disease. There is yet no consensus regarding the appropriate radiotherapy portal following chemotherapy. A good guide to the adjuvant radiotherapy field is the site of relapse in patients treated with chemotherapy alone.Patients and methodsFrom 1980 to 1996, 61 patients with stage I and II supradiaphragmatic Hodgkin's disease were treated with chemotherapy alone at the Royal Marsden Hospital. We undertook a retrospective review and failure analysis to define the pattern of recurrence.ResultsAfter a median follow-up of 6.5 years, 24 patients had relapsed giving a 5-year relapse rate of 40%. The 5 and 10-year actuarial survival rates were 94 and 89%, respectively with cause-sepecific survival being 94% at 5 and 10 years. Two-thirds of the relapses were nodal and supradiaphragmatic. Twenty patients (83%) relapsed in the initially involved sites of disease and this was the sole site of recurrence in 11 (45%) of patients. In retrospect, it appeared that at least 12 recurrences could have been prevented by involved field radiotherapy. Review of detailed imaging data (available in 9 out of 11 patients with recurrences in initial sites of disease) showed that the relapses were always in the initially involved nodes.ConclusionAfter chemotherapy alone in early stage HD most initial recurrences are nodal. Loco-regional recurrences are in the originally involved nodes. Based on limited data it appears that involved nodal RT is equivalent to involved field radiotherapy and may halve the risk of recurrence.