Anti-CD20 Therapy Linked to Prolonged Hospital Stay and Death in Lymphoma Patients With COVID-19

Among patients with B-cell lymphoma who are diagnosed with COVID-19, prior anti-CD20 treatment is associated with a longer hospital stay and an increased risk of death, according to research presented at the European Hematology Association (EHA) 2021 Virtual Congress.

For this retrospective study, researchers evaluated the characteristics of patients with lymphoma who had a prolonged length of hospital stay (LOS) for COVID-19. Prolonged LOS was defined as persisting or recurring hospitalization for COVID-19 symptoms lasting more than 30 days.

Data from patients admitted to 1 of 16 hospitals in France were included. There were 111 patients with lymphoma who were hospitalized for COVID-19.

At 30 days post-admission, 55 patients had been discharged, 31 were still in hospital care, 1 was readmitted for recurrence of COVID-19 symptoms, and 24 patients had died.

In all, 29% of patients (n = 32) met the criteria for prolonged LOS. In this group, the median length of hospital stay was 58 days (range, 31-235 days). At last follow-up, 19 of these patients had been discharged, 4 had ongoing symptoms, and 9 had died.

Among the patients with prolonged LOS, 31% were 70 years of age or older, 63% were men, and 69% had at least 1 clinically significant morbidity.

Nearly a third of patients with prolonged LOS had diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (31%), 3% had Hodgkin lymphoma, and 66% had other B-cell lymphomas. None of the patients had T-cell lymphoma.  

Most patients with prolonged LOS (81%) had received an anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody within the past 12 months, 81% had received chemotherapy in that time, 25% had received an autologous transplant in that time, and 16% had relapsed or refractory disease at baseline.

The median follow-up was 191 days. The 6-month overall survival rate was 69% for the entire cohort.

A multivariate analysis suggested that receiving anti-CD20 therapy within the last 12 months was significantly associated with prolonged LOS (hazard ratio [HR], 2.26; P <.001) and an increased risk of death (HR, 2.17; P =.039).

Other factors significantly associated with prolonged LOS were relapsed or refractory disease (HR, 3.12; P =.028) and age 70 years or older (HR, 2.34; P =.004). Relapsed or refractory disease (HR, 3.34; P =.002) and age 70 years or older (HR, 4.73; P <.001) were also associated with an increased risk of death.

Disclosures: No disclosures were provided.

Reference

Duléry R, Lamure S, Delord M, et al. High incidence of prolonged Covid-19 among patients with lymphoma treated with B-cell depleting immunotherapy. Paper presented at: European Hematology Association 2021 Virtual Congress; June 2021; Abstract S215.

This article originally appeared on Cancer Therapy Advisor