PET-Directed Therapy With Pembrolizumab and Combination Chemotherapy in Treating Patients With Previously Untreated Classical Hodgkin Lymphoma

The purpose of this research study is to evaluate a new drug pembrolizumab in combination with chemotherapy, for the treatment of newly diagnosed Hodgkin lymphoma. The chemotherapy regimen is called AVD and includes three drugs: adriamycin, vinblastin, dacarbazine. Pembrolizumab is currently FDA approved for the treatment of some patients with melanoma, lung cancer and head and neck cancer, but has not yet been approved for the treatment of Hodgkins Lymphoma. The AVD regimen of chemotherapy is currently FDA approved for the treatment of newly diagnosed Hodgkin lymphoma, but has not yet been investigated in combination with pembrolizumab for this disease. For patients who have a new diagnosis of Hodgkins Lymphoma, multi-agent chemotherapy is recommended. Also, for patients who do not have a complete response to chemotherapy (meaning there is still evidence of disease on PET scans performed at the end of treatment), radiation is sometimes recommended. Furthermore, the rare patient who relapses after chemotherapy requires treatment with high dose chemotherapy and a transplant.