Doxorubicin in lymphoma: association between pharmacokinetic variability and clinical response.

ABSTRACT

Despite many years of clinical use in Hodgkin lymphoma, no previous studies have evaluated the relationship between doxorubicin pharmacokinetics and clinical response. In a pilot study, we associated the area under the curve of doxorubicin with successful remission. Patients with successful remission (n = 14) had a trend toward a higher median area under the curve than those who failed remission (n = 4; 36,390 versus 19,350 ng/mL x minute, P = 0.08, respectively). Median peak serum concentrations were 73 ng/mL among failures and 280 ng/mL in those who achieved remission (P = 0.06). The 2 groups did not differ regarding demographic and clinical parameters or doxorubicin dose. If corroborated by further studies, therapeutic drug monitoring of doxorubicin may be warranted in patients with Hodgkin lymphoma.