Recent developments in the treatment of peripheral T-cell lymphoma

Peripheral T-cell lymphomas (PTCL) comprise a heterogeneous group of lymphatic neoplasms, which originate from mature (post-thymic) T-cells. Although comprising less than 15% of all non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) in adults in Western countries, T-cell lymphomas still pose a considerable clinical challenge. To date, no standard therapy is available for the treatment of these T-cell malignancies. Treatment options that brought about substantial clinical progress in B-cell lymphomas perform only very poorly when used for T-cell lymphomas. With standard chemotherapy such as CHOP approximately 30% of T-cell lymphomas show a primary refractory course and only 35% of patients survive after 3-5 years. Therefore, novel treatment approaches need to be designed and validated in clinical trials. Here we discuss recent data including those presented at the last annual meeting of the American Society of Haematology (ASH 2009). Currently under investigation are new treatment modalities such as immune odulatory drugs, antifolates or histone deacetylase inhibitors. In addition, we present the ongoing trials that incorporate hese new modalities. © Springer-Verlag 2010.