Prognostication of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma patients with Deauville score of 3 or 4 at end-of-treatment PET evaluation: a comparison of the Deauville 5-point scale and the ΔSUVmax method

• Published in: Leukemia & lymphoma Vol. 63; no. 1; pp. 256 - 259
• Main Authors: Ng, David Z., Lee, Chuan Yaw, Lam, Winnie W., Tong, Aaron K., Tan, Sze Huey, Khoo, Lay Poh, Tan, Ya Hwee, Chiang, Jianbang, Chang, Esther W., Chan, Jason Y., Poon, Eileen Y., Somasundaram, Nagavalli, Farid H. Rashid, Mohamed, Tao, Miriam, Lim, Soon Thye, Yang, Valerie S.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Taylor & Francis 02.01.2022
• Subjects: Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols - adverse effects; Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma; positron emission tomography; deauville score; delta SUVmax; end-of-treatment evaluation; prognostication; Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; Humans; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse - diagnostic imaging; Lymphoma, Large B-Cell, Diffuse - drug therapy; Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography - methods; Positron-Emission Tomography; Prognosis; Research Design; Retrospective Studies; Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma; positron emission tomography; deauville score; delta SUVmax; end-of-treatment evaluation; prognostication
• ISSN: 1042-8194; 1029-2403
• DOI: 10.1080/10428194.2021.1992624

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is treated with anti-CD 20 and multi-drug chemotherapy for cure. Positron emission tomography (PET) scans are performed at end of treatment (EOT) to assess response. EOT Deauville scores (DS) are equivocal for treatment response in some situations, requiring physicians to determine the need for further investigations or treatment. Studies have suggested the delta maximum standardised uptake value (ΔSUVmax) to be superior to DS for assessment of metabolic response at interim PET, although its use at EOT PET, especially in cases of equivocal response, has yet to be established. We investigated whether ΔSUVmax could better discriminate prognosis than DS 3 or 4 at EOT. ΔSUVmax did not outperform DS. Combination of DS 3 and International Prognostic Index (IPI) <3 selects for patients with extremely low risk of disease progression (HR 0.06, 95% CI 0.01 to 0.62, p 0.018) compared to DS 4 and IPI ≥3.