HIV-infection has no prognostic impact on advanced-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma.

OBJECTIVE: Classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) is a non-AIDS-defining cancer with good response to chemotherapy in the combined antiretroviral therapy (cART) era. The aim of the study was to compare the characteristics, the response with treatment and survival of advanced-stage cHL treated with adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine and dacarbazine (ABVD) between cART-treated HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients.

DESIGN AND METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed advanced-stage cHL patients from a single institution, uniformly treated with ABVD. All HIV-positive patients received cART concomitantly with ABVD.

RESULTS: A total of 69 patients were included in the study: 21 were HIV-positive and 48 were HIV-negative. HIV-positive patients had more aggressive features at cHL diagnosis, such as worse performance status, more frequent bone marrow involvement and mixed cellularity histologic subtype. There were no differences in complete response rate (89% in HIV-positive vs. 91% in HIV-negative), P = 1; disease-free survival 10-year disease-free survival 70 (41-99%) vs. 74% (57-91%), P = 0.907 and overall survival (OS) 10-year OS 73 (95% confidence interval 52-94%) vs. 68% (51-85%), P = 0.904. On multivariate analysis, HIV infection did not correlate with worse OS.

CONCLUSION: Although HIV-positive patients with cHL had more aggressive baseline features in this series, there were no differences in response rate or survival between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients.