Administration of high-dose chemotherapy with stem cell support in patients 40 years of age or older with advanced germ cell tumours: A retrospective study from the European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation database

Germ cell tumours (GCT) comprise exquisitely chemosensitive neoplasms, and cure is possible in patients presenting with a high metastatic tumour burden. For the few patients with high-risk disease or who relapse after first-line chemotherapy, the administration of a tandem or a triple course of high-dose chemotherapy (HDCT) with carboplatin and etoposide with stem cell support may represent a valuable therapeutic option. From November 1981 to December 2015, 1179 patients aged ⩾40 years were identified from a total of 5295 registered patients (22%) from 226 EBMT centres.the present data may aid physicians who are treating advanced GCT to improve their knowledge of the mortality-rate after HDCT administration in older patients. HDCT can be safely administered in these high-risk patients and still represents their first therapeutic option in the salvage setting, pending prospective validation through clinical trials.