Treatment of recurrent refractory mantle cell lymphoma by thalidomide in combination with interferon

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) is a highly aggressive non-Hodgkin's lymphoma with poor prognosis. This study aims to explore a new, safe approach for patients with recurrent refractory MCL. A total of six patients with recurrent refractory MCL were recruited. They all accepted thalidomide tablets (100 mg/day) orally every night, accompanied with interferon α-2b (3 million units, injected subcutaneously) every other day. The patients were followed up for 41, 25, 20, 30, 40 and 36 months, respectively, with a median follow-up time of 33 months (20 to 41 months). No severe adverse reactions occurred. For patients with recurrent refractory MCL, the combination of thalidomide and interferon α-2b showed a positive result to provide them a longer survival period with higher quality of life.   Key words: Recurrent refractory mantle cell lymphoma, thalidomide, interferon α-2b, combination, adverse reaction.