Andrew D. Zelenetz, MD, Chief, Lymphoma Service, Department of Medicine, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Associate Professor of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, believes that brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris), an antidrug conjugate, represents a very exciting treatment for patients.

The FDA approved brentuximab vedotin to treat two types of lymphoma. The first indication came for refractory anaplastic large cell lymphoma and the second for Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) after the failure of either autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) or 2 or more multi-agent chemotherapy regimens.

Investigators are actively developing brentuximab vedotin to find new indications earlier in the treatment course. Zelenetz notes that if a benefit exists in early-stage HL then ASCT could be avoided in the relapsed or refractory setting.