Indolent non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas

Big picture

Indolent non-Hodgkin’s lymphomas (indolent NHLs) are slowly growing mature lymphoid malignancies, usually of B-cell origin, with a long natural history, frequent relapses, and often an initially asymptomatic presentation.

The exam logic is:

Slow lymphocyte proliferation
→ slowly progressive lymphadenopathy / splenomegaly / marrow involvement
→ often advanced stage at diagnosis
→ do not treat automatically
→ “watch and wait” if asymptomatic and low tumor burden
→ treat when symptomatic, bulky, progressive, cytopenic, or organ-threatening

The key contrast is:

| Indolent NHL | Aggressive NHL | | -----------