Proposed classification of lymphoid neoplasms for epidemiologic research from the Pathology Working Group of the International Lymphoma Epidemiology Consortium (InterLymph).
Recent evidence suggests that there is etiologic heterogeneity among the various subtypes of lymphoid neoplasms. However, epidemiologic analyses by disease subtype have proven challenging due to the numerous clinical and pathologic schemes used to classify lymphomas and lymphoid leukemias over the last several decades. On behalf of the International Lymphoma Epidemiology Consortium (InterLymph) Pathology Working Group, we present a proposed nested classification of lymphoid neoplasms to facilitate the analysis of lymphoid neoplasm subtypes in epidemiologic research. The proposed classification is based on the World Health Organization classification of lymphoid neoplasms and the International Classification of Diseases-Oncology, Third Edition (ICD-O-3). We also provide a translation into the proposed classification from previous classifications, including the Working Formulation, Revised European-American Lymphoma (REAL) classification, and ICD-O-2. We recommend that epidemiologic studies include analyses by lymphoma subtype to the most detailed extent allowable by sample size. The standardization of groupings for epidemiologic research of lymphoma subtypes is essential for comparing subtype-specific reports in the literature, harmonizing cases within a single study diagnosed using different systems, as well as combining data from multiple studies for the purpose of pooled analysis or meta-analysis, and will probably prove to be critical for elucidating etiologies of the various lymphoid neoplasms.
Morton
Lindsay M
LM
Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Department of Health and Human Services, Rockville, MD 20852, USA. mortonli@mail.nih.gov
Turner
Jennifer J
JJ
Cerhan
James R
JR
Linet
Martha S
MS
Treseler
Patrick A
PA
Clarke
Christina A
CA
Jack
Andrew
A
Cozen
Wendy
W
Maynadié
Marc
M
Spinelli
John J
JJ
Costantini
Adele Seniori
AS
Rüdiger
Thomas
T
Scarpa
Aldo
A
Zheng
Tongzhang
T
Weisenburger
Dennis D
DD
D005060:Europe / Q000453:epidemiology; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000145:classification* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000473:pathology; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000145:classification / Q000453:epidemiology; D009656:North America / Q000453:epidemiology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results