The Effect of Interim FDG-PET-guided Response-Adapted Therapy in Pediatric Patients with Hodgkin's Lymphoma (HL-14) : Protocol for a Phase II Study.

This trial enrolls patients with untreated Hodgkin's lymphoma aged<20 years at diagnosis and examines the effects of omitting radiation therapy if the FDG-positron emission tomography (PET) findings after two completed cycles of combination chemotherapy are negative. It thereby aims to determine whether patients who truly require radiation therapy can be identified by FDG-PET. If so, this modality could be used to omit radiation therapy for all other patients, decreasing the risk of serious long-term complications without affecting survival rates. The outcomes of patients for whom FDG-PET is used to assess early treatment response will also be determined.