Screening and diagnosis
Many people with Hodgkin's disease experience no classic symptoms.
Often, an abnormality found on a chest X-ray done for nonspecific
symptoms leads to an eventual diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease.
Because the symptoms of Hodgkin's are similar to those of other
disorders, such as influenza, the disease can be difficult to diagnose.
Some distinctive characteristics help diagnose Hodgkin's disease, and
these include:
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The pattern of
spread is orderly, progressing from one group of lymph nodes to the
next.
-
The disease rarely
skips over an area of lymph nodes as it spreads.
A
tissue sample (biopsy) of an enlarged lymph node is needed to make the
diagnosis. The pathologist looks for changes in the normal lymph node
architecture and cell characteristics, including the presence of
Reed-Sternberg cells. The affected lymph nodes may contain only a few of
these malignant cells. Diagnosing Hodgkin's disease can be difficult
because it's possible to mistake other cells for Reed-Sternberg cells.
Other procedures that may be valuable in evaluating Hodgkin's disease
include X-ray, computerized tomography (CT) scan, magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET) scan, bone marrow
biopsy and blood tests. If the disease is predominantly in your abdomen,
you may need exploratory surgery to help define the extent of the
disease.
Once the diagnosis is confirmed, doctors need to "stage" the disease.
Staging is how doctors judge the extent of the disease, which will
likely affect your treatment options.
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Stage I.
The cancer is limited to one lymph node region.
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Stage II.
In this stage, the cancer is in two different lymph node regions,
but is limited to a section of the body either above or below the
diaphragm.
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Stage III.
When the cancer moves to both above and below the diaphragm, but
hasn't spread to other organs, it's considered stage III.
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Stage IV.
This is the most advanced stage of Hodgkin's disease. Stage IV
Hodgkin's disease affects not only the lymph nodes, but also other
parts of your body, such as the bone marrow or your liver.
Hodgkin's disease
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Hodgkin's lymphoma
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