title: Circulating tumor cells in Hodgkin's lymphoma - a review of the spread of HL tumor cells or their putative precursors by lymphatic and hematogenous means, and their prognostic significance.
abstract: About 15% of patients diagnosed with classical Hodgkin's lymphoma (cHL) are considered high risk with unfavorable prognosis. The biology of the disease bears a direct relationship to its clinical course. However, some aspects of the disease are still being debated. Related topics include origin of neoplastic cells as circulating precursor versus germinal center B cell, and disease metastasis via hematogenous routes and the effect of HL circulation on relapse potential and further spread of the disease. The terminally differentiated giant neoplastic Hodgkin Reed-Sternberg (HRS) cells (HRSC) have limited proliferation and lack mobility. Therefore, they are unable to penetrate epithelium. Thus, the clinical aggressiveness of HRSCs that disseminate via both lymphatic and hematogenous may be determined by their molecular composition. This review discusses in detail the historical perspectives on scientific and clinical evidences of precursors of circulating HL cells and the prognostic importance of these circulating cells for predicting outcome.
authors.affiliation: The Genomics and Biomarkers Program, The John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States.
authors.forename: Rajendra
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gharbaran
authors.affiliation: The Genomics and Biomarkers Program, The John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States.
authors.forename: Jongwhan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: The Genomics and Biomarkers Program, The John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Lymphoma Division, The John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Goy
authors.affiliation: The Genomics and Biomarkers Program, The John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, NJ 07601, United States. Electronic address: ksuh@HackensackUMC.org.
authors.forename: K Stephen
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Suh
mesh_terms: D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000473:pathology*; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008208:Lymphatic System / Q000473:pathology*; D009362:Neoplasm Metastasis; D009360:Neoplastic Cells, Circulating; D011379:Prognosis
keywords: Biomarkers; Circulating tumor cells; Clinical outcome; Hodgkin lymphoma; Metastasis; Prognosis