Polatuzumab-Based Therapy Improves Survival for Patients With R/R DLBCL Ineligible for Transplant
Polatuzumab vedotin combined with rituximab and bendamustine (PBR) demonstrated superior overall survival (OS) compared with conventional chemotherapy among patients with relapsed or refractory (R/R) diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), according to study results published in the International Journal of Hematology.
Patients with R/R DLBCL who are ineligible for autologous stem cell transplantation or cellular immunotherapy have a poor prognosis. To address this, researchers conducted a comparative cohort study to determine the efficacy of polatuzumab vedotin combined with rituximab and bendamustine compared with conventional chemotherapy.
Among 86 patients with either primary refractory or first-relapse DLBCL, 32 received polatuzumab vedotin combined with rituximab and bendamustine and 54 received conventional chemotherapy, of which, 32 baseline-matched patients from the chemotherapy group were selected.
The median OS for patients treated with polatuzumab vedotin combined with rituximab and bendamustine was 19.7 months, which was higher than the median OS among patients treated with conventional chemotherapy (15.8 months, P = .025).
Univariate and multivariate analyses identified PBR as an independent predictor of improved OS. Improved outcomes, including longer progression-free survival (PFS), were identified in the polatuzumab vedotin combined with rituximab and bendamustine group despite 41.2% of patients being over the age of 80 years, while only 11.1% of patients in the conventional chemotherapy group were over 80 years of age.
The researchers concluded, “These results suggest that PBR therapy is more effective and tolerable than conventional chemotherapy in patients with R/R DLBCL.”
Source:
Mishina T, Manako C, Sugawara T, Tsujimura H, Kumagai K, Takeuchi M. Efficacy of polatuzumab vedotin versus conventional chemotherapy in relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. International Journal of Hematology. Published online October 15, 2025. doi:10.1007/s12185-025-04084-z
