Comparison of vindesine and prednisone and cyclophosphamide, etoposide, vindesine, and prednisone as first-line treatment for adult Langerhans cell histiocytosis: A single-center retrospective study

•Two regimens as the first line treatment in adult LCH were compared.•Two regimens for the treatment of adult SS-m or MS LCH showed similar efficacy.•Treatment with two regimens was associated with a high recurrence rate.

ObjectiveWe compared the efficacy and clinical outcomes of vindesine and prednisone (VP) and cyclophosphamide, etoposide, vindesine, and prednisone (CEVP) regimens as first-line treatment for multisystem (MS) or multifocal single system (SS-m) adult Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH).MethodClinical features, treatment response, and survival of adults with Langerhans cell histiocytosis treated at our center from January 2001 to January 2015 were reviewed retrospectively.ResultsForty-five adult MS or SS-m LCH patients were treated (N = 31, CEVP group; N = 14, VP group). Both treatment groups had similar gender distributions, patient ages, and extent of disease. The non-active disease rate for both groups was 70.0% and 64.3% (P = 0.775), respectively. Median follow-up was 74.9 (range: 2.8–183.6) months and recurrence rates were 71.0% and 78.6% (P = 0.593), respectively. The need for second-line therapy was 64.5% and 71.4% (P = 0.649), respectively, and mortality rates were 9.7% and 15.4% (P = 0.586), respectively. Neutropenia occurred in 48.4% of CEVP-treated patients and 7.1% of VP-treated patients (P = 0.008).ConclusionsCEVP or VP regimens for the treatment of adult SS-m or MS LCH showed similar efficacies, and both regimens were associated with high disease recurrence and the need for second-line therapy.