18 F-FDG PET/CT prognostic role in predicting response to salvage therapy in relapsed/refractory Hodgkin's lymphoma

PurposeTo evaluate the response predictors, both clinical and 18F-FDG PET/CT parameters, in Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) patients diagnosed with refractory/relapsed disease who were planned to receive salvage therapy.MethodsIn this retrospective study, all HL patients referred to our center between March 2015 and July 2021 were reviewed. Patients with refractory/relapsed disease who were candidates for salvage therapy were included. 18F-FDG PET/CT measurements at the time of diagnosis were extracted as the predictors, and the lesions' response at the end of the salvage therapy was considered the outcomes. The Kaplan-Meier method and multiple Cox regression were utilized to find the significant parameters to predict the time to reach the complete response. The statistical significance level was set at a two-sided p-value