Hodgkin’s disease

Big picture

Hodgkin’s disease, now called Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), is a malignant lymphoid neoplasm characterized by Hodgkin/Reed–Sternberg cells in a rich inflammatory background. The classic exam picture is:

Young adult
+ painless cervical lymphadenopathy
+ B symptoms
+ mediastinal mass
+ Reed–Sternberg cells
+ CD15/CD30 positivity

It is one of the most curable malignant lymphomas. The textbook notes that it mainly affects younger adults and that nearly 90% of patients can be cured with modern therapy.