Treatment for CTCL varies from one person to another. Treatment is based on your:

• Type of CTCL
• Age and activity level
• Stage of disease
• Overall health
• Symptoms
• Access to treatment options
• Prior treatments for CTCL

There are 2 different types of treatments for CTCL. You may have had some of these treatments in the past. Be sure to talk with your doctor about the treatments that may be right for you.

Topical treatments for CTCL
Some treatments for CTCL are directed at the skin. These treatments are called topical treatments and may include:

• Medicines you put on the skin, such as corticosteroids, chemotherapies, and retinoids (made from vitamin A)
• Light therapy (phototherapy), which exposes the affected areas of the skin to special ultraviolet (UV) rays
• Radiation therapy, which uses high-dose x-rays and can include:
  • Local radiation to single areas of the skin
  • Total skin electron beam therapy (TSEBT) to the entire body

Systemic treatments for CTCL
Some treatments for CTCL affect the entire body. These treatments are called systemic treatments and may include:

• Biologic therapies (or immunotherapies) that use the body’s own immune system to fight CTCL.
• Retinoids, which are vitamin A–related compounds that are active in treating CTCL.
• Extracorporeal photopheresis (EK-stra-core-PORE-ee-uhl FOE-toe-fuh-REE-sis). This involves taking blood from a vein and passing it through a machine where it is treated with a drug that makes the white blood cells (particularly T-lymphocytes) more sensitive to UV light. The blood is then exposed to UV light and returned to the body.
• Chemotherapy, which uses one or more anticancer drugs.
• Bone marrow and stem cell transplantation. Bone marrow or stem cells are taken from the patient or a donor and stored. When the patient completes intensive chemotherapy, the bone marrow or stem cells are returned to the patient.