Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma: Relapsed/Refractory

The term “relapsed” refers to disease that reappears or grows again after a period of remission.

The term “refractory” is used to describe when the lymphoma does not respond to treatment (meaning that the cancer cells continue to grow) or when the response to treatment does not last very long.

No consensus exists on the best therapeutic strategy for relapsed/refractory Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma (PTCL).

Since 2009, there have been three agents approved for people with PTCL by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA):

• Pralatrexate (Folotyn)
• Romidepsin (Istodax)
• Belinostat (Beleodaq)

For patients with relapsed or refractory PTCL, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network guidelines recommend clinical trials. If a clinical trial is not available, combination therapies or single-agent drugs may be prescribed. In addition, some patients may receive a stem cell transplant (SCT).
Many new drugs are being studied in clinical trials for the treatment of PTCL, including:

• Alisertib
• Bendamustine (Treanda)
• Bortezomib (Velcade)
• GDP (gemcitabine, dexamethasone, and cisplatin)
• Lenalidomide (Revlimid)
• Nivolumab (Opdivo)
• Panobinostat (Farydak)
• Pembrolizumab (Keytruda)
• PI3K inhibitors

To learn more about relapsed/refractory PTCL, download the Peripheral T-Cell Lymphoma Fact Sheet.