Italy adds ready-to-use option for hard-to-treat lymphoma

People in Italy whose diffuse large B-cell lymphoma returns or resists initial treatment now have another reimbursed option: the antibody glofitamab combined with GemOx chemotherapy.

Glofitamab is a bispecific antibody, meaning it can bind to two different targets and help direct an immune response against cancer cells. GemOx combines the chemotherapy medicines gemcitabine and oxaliplatin. In the international phase III STARGLO trial, the combination produced significant improvements in both overall survival and the time patients lived without their disease worsening, compared with the standard treatment studied.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is the most common type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma and can progress quickly. Up to 40% of patients have disease that does not respond to first-line therapy or later returns. Further treatment may include CAR-T therapy or an autologous stem-cell transplant, depending partly on when the lymphoma returns, but these approaches are not suitable or appropriate for everyone.

The newly available combination also has practical advantages. It is ready for use, which matters when treatment needs to begin promptly, and follows a fixed number of cycles rather than continuing indefinitely. That gives patients and caregivers a clearer finishing point and the prospect of a treatment-free period.