Purpose: In contrast to the Western diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), prognostic impact of age in a Korean population with DLBCL has not been fully evaluated. Materials and Methods: Six hundred and eight DLBCL patients treated with rituximab-containing chemotherapeutic regimens from January 2002 to March 2012 in Asan Medical Center were enrolled. Survival models using the restricted cubic spine−transformed age variable were constructed to evaluate non-linear relationships between age and survival outcome. Finally, age was categorized according to the conventional international prognostic index (IPI), National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)-IPI, and Grupo Español de Linfomas/Trasplante Autólogo de Médula Ósea (GELTAMO)-IPI schemes and the prognostic implications were evaluated. Results: The relative hazard did not change significantly during the first to fifth decades, but began to increase exponentially in patients aged over 62 years. This pattern or relationship was also retained in a multivariate model fitted to the age-adjusted IPI and relative dose intensity. Multivariate survival analysis revealed that age > 75 years, but not age > 60 years, was associated independently with poor overall and progression-free survival when the relative dose intensity and age-adjusted IPI were taken into account. Conclusion The outcome of DLBCL in Korean populations may deteriorate rapidly as age exceeds 62 years. Therefore, a consensus cutoff value for age in Korean DLBCL patients should be determined to better predict prognosis.

Background: Follicular lymphoma (FL) is the second most common non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in Western countries. However, it is relatively rare in Asia. This study examined epidemiologic characteristics of FL in South Korea, with an emphasis on recent trends of increase in cases. Methods: We retrospectively examined 239 cases of newly diagnosed FL at a large tertiary institution in Korea (Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea) between 2008 and 2017. Age-adjusted incidence rates and clinicopathological variables were analyzed, and joinpoint regression analysis was used to identify the changes. Results: The age-adjusted incidence of FL significantly increased during the study period (p = .034), and the ratio of (relative incidence) patients with FL to patients with NHL increased from 4.28% to 9.35% in the same period. Over the 10-year study assessment duration, the proportion of patients with stage III/IV FL (p = .035) and expression of BCL2 (p = .022) or BCL6 (p = .039) significantly increased. From 2013–2017, the proportion of patients with highrisk Follicular Lymphoma International Prognostic Index (FLIPI) score increased (21.5% to 28.7%), whereas that of low-risk FLIPI decreased (55.4% to 38.6%), although those results were not statistically significant (p = .066). Conclusions We found an increasing incidence of FL, with a disproportionate increase in the incidence of high-stage disease and recent changes in the clinicopathologic features of the Korean patient population.

Background: Follicular lymphoma (FL) is the second most common non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) in Western countries. However, it is relatively rare in Asia. This study examined epidemiologic characteristics of FL in South Korea, with an emphasis on recent trends of increase in cases. Methods: We retrospectively examined 239 cases of newly diagnosed FL at a large tertiary institution in Korea (Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea) between 2008 and 2017. Age-adjusted incidence rates and clinicopathological variables were analyzed, and joinpoint regression analysis was used to identify the changes. Results: The age-adjusted incidence of FL significantly increased during the study period (p = .034), and the ratio of (relative incidence) patients with FL to patients with NHL increased from 4.28% to 9.35% in the same period. Over the 10-year study assessment duration, the proportion of patients with stage III/IV FL (p = .035) and expression of BCL2 (p = .022) or BCL6 (p = .039) significantly increased. From 2013–2017, the proportion of patients with highrisk Follicular Lymphoma International Prognostic Index (FLIPI) score increased (21.5% to 28.7%), whereas that of low-risk FLIPI decreased (55.4% to 38.6%), although those results were not statistically significant (p = .066). Conclusions We found an increasing incidence of FL, with a disproportionate increase in the incidence of high-stage disease and recent changes in the clinicopathologic features of the Korean patient population.