RT can be omitted in early stage HL in so defined CR following this chemotherapy. RT with 20(-35) Gy proved to be sufficient in patients with incomplete remission following chemotherapy.

We intend to conduct a nationwide survey entitled 'Fertility after Chemo- and Radiotherapy in Paediatric and Adolescent Patients' (FeCt). The aim is to gain valuable data with a larger number of participants and more statistical power to determine whether specific cytotoxic drugs or radiation increase the risk of infertility, and if so, at what doses. For the study, the DKKR has the addresses of more than 5 000 former patients in Germany who are now adults. The results will be used to plan future treatment optimisation studies, and to assess the need for prophylactic measures in cases where fertility-compromising therapies are unavoidable. This nationwide survey 'FeCt' will be supported by the Deutsche Kinderkrebsstiftung.

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Paediatric oncological therapy seems to have led to fertility impairment in about 1/3 of the participants. Considering this serious impairment, patients and their families should be given comprehensive counselling ahead of therapy to enable fertility-preserving measures. For persons who wish to have children after undergoing therapy we recommend a hormone and sperm analysis. An early analysis may enable a more successful family planning.

The prognosis for children and adolescents with Hodgkin’s lymphoma is excellent. However, many patients will show secondary malignancies 15–30 years after the initial diagnosis, which appears to be connected with the intensity of treatment during primary disease. In the GPOH-HD 95 trial, the indication for radiotherapy was limited to patients who did not show a complete remission after chemotherapy, as determined radiographically. In the future protocol, the indication for radiotherapy in patients with early-stage Hodgkin’s lymphoma should be further refined by using FDG-PET for evaluating the response to chemotherapy. Furthermore, in patients at an advanced stage of the disease, it should be determined if sequential FDG-PET research during chemotherapy can separate patients into subgroups with an excellent or a poor prognosis. This article gives a review of the current literature on FDG-PET in patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma and outlines the consequences for future protocols.