Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Multicenter Study
. 2025 Jan;43(1):e70017.
doi: 10.1002/hon.70017.

Efficacy and Safety of Polatuzumab Vedotin Plus Rituximab, Cyclophosphamide, Doxorubicin and Prednisone for Previously Untreated Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Real-World, Multi-Center, Retrospective Cohort Study

Peiqi Zhao  1 , Shu Zhao  2 , Chen Huang  3 , Yajun Li  4 , Jiesong Wang  5 , Junqing Xu  6 , Lanfang Li  1 , Zhengzi Qian  1 , Wei Li  1 , Shiyong Zhou  1 , Lihua Qiu  1 , Xianming Liu  1 , Ying Chen  5 , Yanan Jiang  6 , Yanbin Zheng  5 , Daoguang Chen  5 , Hui Zhou  4 , Yuhuan Gao  3 , Qingyuan Zhang  2 , Huilai Zhang  1
Affiliations
Multicenter Study

Efficacy and Safety of Polatuzumab Vedotin Plus Rituximab, Cyclophosphamide, Doxorubicin and Prednisone for Previously Untreated Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma: A Real-World, Multi-Center, Retrospective Cohort Study

Peiqi Zhao et al. Hematol Oncol. 2025 Jan.

Abstract

Polatuzumab vedotin plus R-CHP (Pola-R-CHP) is approved as a new standard first-line therapy for diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) based on the POLARIX trial. However, real-world data on its efficacy and safety in unselected patients is lacking. We conducted a retrospective cohort study to evaluate Pola-R-CHP versus R-CHOP outcomes in routine clinical practice in China. This is a multi-institutional retrospective cohort study and included all consecutive patients that received at least one dose of polatuzumab vedotin up until February 2024. A total of 600 eligible patients from 6 centers were identified, 131 receiving Pola-R-CHP and 469 R-CHOP. After 1:2 propensity score matching, 128 pairs were obtained for further survival and prognosis analysis. With a median follow-up of 12.8 months, 12-month progression-free survival (PFS) was numerically higher with Pola-R-CHP versus R-CHOP (90.3% vs. 84.1%, p = 0.18). Benefits were consistently observed across molecular subgroups, especially advanced stage, ECOG ≥ 2, extranodal involvement ≥ 2 and non-GCB group. The complete response rate of the Pola-R-CHP group was higher than that of the RCHOP group (86.8% vs. 79.7%; p = 0.09), but there was no statistical difference. Safety profiles were comparable, with no new concerns. Among 128 patients treated with Pola-R-CHP, 96 underwent gene sequencing analysis: MCD (25.0%), EZB (13.5%), combined subtype (12.5%), ST2 (9.4%), and other/unclassifiable subtype (30.2%). The most common mutations (> 25% of cases) were PIM1, TP53, BCL-6, KMT2D, SOCS1, BCL-2. Genetic testing results show the correlation between genotyping, gene mutations in PIM1/TP53 and therapeutic efficacy. This large real-world study supports Pola-R-CHP as an effective frontline option for DLBCL, with sustained efficacy versus R-CHOP observed in unselected populations. While 12-month PFS failed to reach statistical significance, subgroup analyses favor Pola-R-CHP. Further research with a wider population, longer follow-up, and screening of advantageous groups are warranted.

Keywords: diffuse large B cell lymphoma; genetic subtypes; polatuzumab‐vedotin; prognosis; propensity score matching.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. L. R. Teras, C. E. DeSantis, J. R. Cerhan, et al. “US Lymphoid Malignancy Statistics by World Health Organization Subtypes.” CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians 66, no. 6 (2016): 443–459, https://doi.org/10.3322/caac.21357.
    1. M. Pfreundschuh, E. Kuhnt, L. Trumper, et al. “CHOP‐Like Chemotherapy With or Without Rituximab in Young Patients With Good‐Prognosis Diffuse Large‐B‐Cell Lymphoma: 6‐Year Results of an Open‐Label Randomised Study of the MabThera International Trial (MInT) Group,” Lancet Oncology 12, no. 11 (2011): 1013–1022, https://doi.org/10.1016/s1470‐2045(11)70235‐2.
    1. L. H. Sehn and G. Salles, “Diffuse Large B‐Cell Lymphoma,” New England Journal of Medicine 384, no. 9 (2021): 842–858, https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmra2027612.
    1. E. Campo, E. S. Jaffe, J. R. Cook, et al. “The International Consensus Classification of Mature Lymphoid Neoplasms: A Report From the Clinical Advisory Committee,” Blood 140, no. 11 (2022): 1229–1253, https://doi.org/10.1182/blood.2022015851.
    1. R. Alaggio, C. Amador, I. Anagnostopoulos, et al. “The 5th Edition of the World Health Organization Classification of Haematolymphoid Tumours: Lymphoid Neoplasms,” Leukemia 36, no. 7 (2022): 1720–1748, https://doi.org/10.1038/s41375‐022‐01620‐2.

Publication types

MeSH terms