title: Interleukin-6-associated laboratory parameters and immunohistochemistry in symptomatic stage A and B nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease in children.
abstract: Interleukin (IL)-6-associated laboratory parameters obtained at diagnosis on 17 children with histologically confirmed nodular sclerosing Hodgkin's disease (NSHD) are reported. When these patients were grouped as either symptomatic stage A or B, they were found to be similar in extent of disease, age, and gender. However, statistically significant differences between these two groups were observed for the means of the following IL-6-associated laboratory parameters: hematocrit (p = 0.019), platelet count (p = 0.009), serum albumin (p = 0.001), and ferritin (p = 0.037) concentrations. Moreover, trend analysis of abnormalcy revealed an increasing frequency of anemia, thrombocytosis, hypoalbuminemia, and hyperferritinemia between stage A and B patients and, when available, febrile controls (p values = 0.0012, 0.0009, 0.0406, and 0.0011, respectively). Correspondingly, IL-6 immunohistochemistry performed on archival material from representative cases in each group showed greater overall reactivity in specimens from stage B patients. A variety of cells accounted for this positivity for IL-6 antigen including Reed-Sternberg cells and their variants, lacunar cells, dendritic interdigitating cells, endothelial cells, fibroblasts, and vascular smooth muscle cells. In summary, greater and more frequent abnormalities in IL-6-associated laboratory parameters and increased immunohistochemical reactivity for IL-6 antigen coincide with the presence of fever in helping to identify children with clinical stage B NSHD.
authors.affiliation: Division of Laboratory Medicine, Geisinger Medical Center, Danville, PA 17822, USA.
authors.forename: R E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Brown
authors.forename: N R
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Lobel
authors.forename: B A
authors.initials: BA
authors.lastname: George
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gaylord
authors.forename: W L
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Simonich
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000378:metabolism; D002648:Child; D003712:Dendrites / Q000276:immunology; D005260:Female; D005293:Ferritins / Q000097:blood; D005334:Fever; D006400:Hematocrit; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012709:Serum Albumin / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015850:Interleukin-6; D012709:Serum Albumin; D005293:Ferritins