title: Large proportion of Epstein-Barr virus-associated small noncleaved cell lymphomas among children with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma at a single institution in Moscow, Russia.
abstract: To evaluate clinical and biologic features of children with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) treated in Moscow, Russia, we studied 53 cases treated in the Republican Children's Hospital from 1990 to 1994. Histologic examination disclosed a predominance of the small noncleaved cell subtype (32 cases, 60%); a smaller percentage of the lymphoblastic and large-cell subtypes (14 cases, 26% and 7 cases, 13%, respectively) were identified. The frequencies of primary sites of involvement in descending order included 60% in abdomen, 19% in mediastinum, 15% in head/neck, and 4% in peripheral nodes. The majority of children presented with advanced stage disease (St. Jude stage III/IV/B-ALL, 92.5%). Of interest, 8 of 15 (53%) small noncleaved cell NHL cases examined contained Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). The high frequency of EBV association in this study suggests that this virus may play a more global role in NHL pathogenesis than previously recognized.
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology-Oncology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, University of Tennessee College of Medicine, Memphis 38101, USA.
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Sandlund
authors.forename: Z I
authors.initials: ZI
authors.lastname: Gorban
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Berard
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sixbey
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Razzouk
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Talalayev
authors.forename: N N
authors.initials: NN
authors.lastname: Toopytsyn
authors.forename: A G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Rumjantsev
authors.forename: V V
authors.initials: VV
authors.lastname: Lebedev
authors.forename: A I
authors.initials: AI
authors.lastname: Karachunsky
authors.forename: L H
authors.initials: LH
authors.lastname: Belikova
authors.forename: O I
authors.initials: OI
authors.lastname: Kryzhanovsky
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: W M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Crist
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Pui
authors.forename: E V
authors.initials: EV
authors.lastname: Samochatova
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002051:Burkitt Lymphoma / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D004854:Herpesvirus 4, Human; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D012426:Russia / Q000453:epidemiology