On Jun. 19, 2002, National Cancer Institute (NCI) scientists used microarray technology to determine the patterns of genes that are active in tumor cells from which they were able to predict whether patients with the most common form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in adults are likely to be cured by chemotherapy.

Trials designed to correlate clinical results with molecular data allowed researchers to identify drugs that are effective in subgroups of cancer patients, an approach that had already proven effective in finding new agents to treat breast cancer and leukemia.

Today, Chemotherapy,  radiation therapy, targeted therapy, and immunotherapy are all used in the treatment of non-Hodgkin lymphoma. A stem cell transplant is sometimes used for lymphoma that has recurred, but this procedure has serious side effects. Four CAR T-cell therapies have been approved to treat some types of recurrent lymphoma. However, these newer therapies still can’t cure many people with recurrent lymphoma.