Clinical and laboratory findings in untreated patients with Hodgkin's disease with special reference to age.

During a 6-yr period 258 adult patients (greater than or equal to 15 yr) with biopsy verified Hodgkin's disease (HD) were reported to the Stockholm-Gotland Oncologic Center. In 57 elderly patients (mean age 74 yr) the diagnosis was established shortly before death or at autopsy. One hundred and eighty-two of remaining 201 patients (118 men and 64 women, mean age 47 yr) were investigated. They were evenly distributed in stages I-IV and 43% had B symptoms. NS, 38% and MC, 38% were the most common histological subtypes in contrast to LP, 14% and LD, 10%. Stage II disease and NS histopathology dominated among patients below 50 yr. Patients with hilar/mediastinal lymphomas were often young and had NS histopathology with B symptoms. The diagnosis was established within 3 months after the first symptoms in 52% while 15% had symptoms for more than one year. Eleven patients reported a previous malignancy which is similar to the expected number of 13.8. The results support the concept that in unselected patient series HD seems to be at least as common among elderly as in young people. In the investigated series advanced disease and MC and LD histopathology did not dominate among patients above 50 yr which has been reported previously.