The response to treatment of nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease with extranodal involvement.

A study of the relationship between extranodal involvement and subsequent relapse has been undertaken in 32 patients with Stage IV nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease treated by chemotherapy. All patients were investigated and treated according to protocols of the British National Lymphoma Investigation. The most significant observation is that patients classified Stage IV by virtue of contiguous extranodal extension from bulky nodal lesions are inadequately treated by chemotherapy alone. Overall, 11 out of 12 (E) stage patients had residual or recurrent disease following quadruple chemotherapy. Four of these patients have since been rendered disease-free by radiotherapy.