Blood test in dogs may predict lymphoma response ^{CEFR B1}

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma is an aggressive blood cancer treated with an antibody plus four chemotherapy drugs. This approach cures many patients but fails in about three in ten, and the chemotherapy can cause heart damage, a particular concern for older people. Because clinicians cannot reliably predict who will respond, they often avoid newer, potentially less toxic regimens.

A new study in pet dogs offers a way to predict response early. Researchers from Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and UMass Chan analysed blood samples from a prior clinical trial. Dogs were randomly assigned to one of three regimens. Each combined a canine antibody equivalent to the human drug with a low dose of doxorubicin, followed by one of three experimental immune‑boosting therapies; two of these are also being tested in humans.

Rather than tumour tissue, the team measured gene activity in circulating immune cells before treatment, seven days into treatment (just before the novel immunotherapy), at the end of the chemo‑immunotherapy cycle, and at relapse or 400 days for dogs that remained cancer‑free. They compared patterns between dogs that relapsed quickly and those that survived much longer.

The study, published in Scientific Reports, found that higher activity of CD1E and CCL14 was linked to long‑term survival; CD1E helps T cells recognise cancer and CCL14 recruits immune cells. By contrast, interferon‑stimulated genes were associated with worse outcomes and earlier relapse. Heather Gardner developed a simple lab test to detect the early‑warning genes, and Cheryl London plans to test whether using such a test to guide treatment can improve survival. The researchers say these results point toward blood tests that could guide more personalised decisions in veterinary and human lymphoma care.