ABSTRACT
Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is one of the few curable cancers among adults. Compared with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, bulky infradiaphragmatic lesions with obstructive symptoms are rare in HL. An excisional biopsy of a suspicious lymph node should be performed to confirm the diagnosis of HL. Enough material should be extracted; however, ‘spacious debulking’ to reduce tumour mass does not improve the prognosis of HL. HL patients are usually treated according to stage and risk factors. The histological subtype – except the lymphocyte-predominant type – does not influence the treatment decision. The stage of HL at diagnosis is determined according to the Ann Arbor classification. In an attempt to more precisely define the risk for patients with advanced HL, a variety of clinical and laboratory parameters were analyzed to construct a prognostic index. Patients with early stage unfavourable HL generally qualify for combined modality treatment.
