title: Hodgkin lymphoma in childhood: clinicopathological features and therapy outcome at 2 centers from a developing country.
abstract: Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) accounts for 5% to 6% of all childhood cancer. It displays characteristic epidemiological, clinical, and pathological features according to various geographic areas. We aimed to assess the epidemiological aspects, clinicopathological features, and treatment outcome of pediatric HL treated at 2 Egyptian centers: Zagazig University Pediatric Oncology Unit and Benha Special Hospital Pediatric Oncology Unit. We carried a cross-sectional retrospective study by reviewing medical records for all patients admitted with the diagnosis of HL over 8 years in 2 oncology units during the period from January 2004 to January 2012. Age of the patients at presentation ranged from 3 to 14 years (median 6 years) and male: female ratio 1.7:1. Lymphadenopathy was the most common presentation (96.6%). Mixed cellularity subtype was dominant (50.8%), followed by nodular sclerosis (28.9%), lymphocyte-rich (18.6%) with lymphocyte depletion being the least dominant (1.7%). More than half of patients (55.9 %) had advanced disease (Ann Arbor stage III/IV disease). The duration of follow-up ranged from 5 to 87 months (mean 39.8 ± 24.1 months). The 5-year overall survival and event-free survival for patients were 96.6% and 84.7% respectively. In Egypt, HL occurs in young age group, with a higher incidence of mixed cellularity subtype and advanced disease. None of the clinical, epidemiological, or pathological characteristics had a significant association with the overall survival. The outcomes of HL in our 2 centers were satisfactory approaching the international percentage.
authors.affiliation: From the Departments of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig (LMS, URE, ERA, RE, THH, HSS, MRB, SHS); Cairo Universities (NMK); and Benha Specialized Pediatric Hospital, Benha, Egypt (LMS, ERA).
authors.forename: Laila M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Sherief
authors.forename: Usama R
authors.initials: UR
authors.lastname: Elsafy
authors.forename: Elhamy R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Abdelkhalek
authors.forename: Naglaa M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Kamal
authors.forename: Rabab
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Elbehedy
authors.forename: Tamer H
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Hassan
authors.forename: Hanan S
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Sherbiny
authors.forename: Mohamed R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Beshir
authors.forename: Safaa H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Saleh
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001761:Bleomycin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D059248:Chemoradiotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003606:Dacarbazine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003906:Developing Countries; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004534:Egypt / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006689:Hodgkin Disease / Q000401:mortality / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D014747:Vinblastine / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D001761:Bleomycin; D014747:Vinblastine; D003606:Dacarbazine; D004317:Doxorubicin