Impact of non-CTCL dermatologic diagnoses and adjuvant therapies on cutaneous T-cell lymphoma patients treated with total skin electron beam radiation therapy.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the impact of pre-cutaneous T-cell lymphoma dermatologic diagnoses and adjuvant therapies on the relapse-free and overall survivals of patients treated with total skin electron beam therapy. METHODS AND MATERIALS: Between 1974 and 1990, 164 patients were evaluated by members of Yale University School of Medicine departments of Dermatology and Therapeutic Radiology and treated with total skin electron beam therapy to a total dose of 3600 cGy. Patients who achieved a clinical complete response were offered doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide chemotherapy, extracorporeal photopheresis, or no systemic adjuvant therapy. The effects of TNM stage, antecedent non-T-cell lymphoma dermatologic diagnoses, and systemic adjuvant therapies were analyzed for their impact on relapse-free and overall survival. RESULTS: In this cohort of patients, an antecedent dermatologic diagnosis of follicular mucinosis or lymphomatoid papulosis was significantly associated with a shorter relapse-free survival for T1 and T2 patients, while antecedent "non-specific" dermatitides were associated with a somewhat better relapse-free survival. When the impact of systemic adjuvant therapies was analyzed, neither systemic doxorubicin/cyclophosphamide chemotherapy nor systemic extracorporeal photopheresis were found to delay cutaneous relapse. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that antecedent follicular mucinosis and lymphomatoid papulosis may be associated with short relapse-free survival in T1 and T2 patients treated with total skin electron beam therapy. They also imply that neither adjuvant chemotherapy nor extracorporeal photopheresis delay cutaneous relapse after total skin electron beam therapy.