A Long-Term Disease-Free Patient with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma Treated with High Dose Combination Chemotherapy (AAABC) Followed by Autologous Bone Marrow Transplantation

Abstract

A 48-year-old Japanese man with advanced non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (clinical stage IIIs B) was treated with high dose combination chemotherapy consisted of adriamycin, ACNU, cytosine arabinoside, bleomycin and cyclophosphamide, followed by the infusion of cryopreserved autologous bone marrow. Peripheral blood returned to normal on Day 16. On Day 24, the patient became febrile and developed an erythematous maculopapular skin rash with lymph node enlargement. Although skin rash improved transiently, it reccurred on Day 40. Biopsy specimens of the skin showed a finding indistinguishable from that of grade II acute cutaneous graft versus host disease. Administration of prednisolone 30 mg daily resulted in the disappearance of skin rash. Subsequently, the patient remains disease-free for 20 months without additional chemotherapy.