Antiviral therapy after complete response to chemotherapy could be efficacious in HCV-positive non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma

Background/Aims Prevalence of HCV infection in non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is high. The impact of antiviral therapy on the natural history of this subgroup of lymphomas after a successful chemotherapy regimen is still an argument of debate. Methods We retrospectively examined 343 chemotherapy-treated patients referred to our centre for five consecutive years. Clinical and histological characteristics, disease free-survival (DFS) and overall-survival (OS) were compared in HCV-positive (69/343) and HCV-negative (274/343) patients. Twenty-five HCV-positive patients received antiviral treatment following chemotherapy discontinuation. Uni- and multivariate analyses were performed. Results 20% of lymphomas were HCV-positive. Indolent histology was prevalent in the HCV-positive group (p < 0.05); no significant differences in OS or DFS were found between the two groups; in HCV-positive subjects, antiviral therapy, was associated with a longer DFS (p < 0.05); none of the HCV-positive subjects who achieved a virological response experienced any lymphoma relapse; 29% of non responders did; at multivariate analysis, the independent factors related to a better clinical outcome were: indolent histology at the onset of lymphoma and antiviral therapy. Conclusions Antiviral treatment in HCV-positive non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma may be an important strategy to reinforce the results of a successful chemotherapy regimen; further studies are needed to validate this combined approach.