Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have reported that children and teens with non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) have better survival than young adults. These results were published in the March 2010 issue of the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.

It has been previous demonstrated that adolescents with acute lymphoblastic leukemia treated on pediatric protocols have a better survival that those treated on adult protocols. This is apparently due to the fact that pediatric protocols are more intensive than adult protocols.

To explore how outcomes vary among young people with NHL, researchers collected information from large cancer registries. From 1992 through 2001, information was available for 2,442 NHL patients between the ages of 0 and 29.

• Compared with children and adolescents, young adults (20-29 years of age) were roughly twice as likely to die. Differences in survival by age persisted even after accounting for stage at diagnosis and NHL subtype.

Comments: These results suggest that young adults with NHL have a higher risk of death than children and teens with NHL. In order to improve outcomes among young adults, the researchers recommend greater enrollment in clinical trials and increased access to care.

Reference: Tai E, Pollack LA, Townsend J, Li J, Steele CB, Richardson LC. Differences in non-Hodgkin lymphoma survival between young adults and children. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. 2010;164:218-224.