Clinical Spectrum and Frequency of Bone Marrow Infiltration in Hodgkin Lymphoma Patients Presenting to a Tertiary Care Hospital

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a lymphoid malignancy that affects peripheral lymph nodes as well as organs like lungs, liver and bone marrow. It has 05 types. The clinical features of HL include lymphadenopathy and constitutional 'B' symptoms (fever, night sweats & weight loss). This study was conducted to describe the clinical spectrum and frequency of bone marrow infiltration in Hodgkin lymphoma patients presenting to Hematology department of AIMC Lahore.Methods: This descriptive study has utilized data of known cases of HL, referred by Oncology department for bone marrow biopsy from January 2019 to December 2022, retrieved from medical records. Information was noted regarding demographic profile of the patient along with the clinical features, type of HL and infiltration of bone marrow. Data were analyzed using SPSS version 24.0.Results: The study consisted of 24 HL patients between 10 to 60 years of age. The median age was 41 years. There were 21 male (87.5%) and 03 female (12.5%) patients (male-to-female ratio: 7:1). Lympha-denopathy was the predominant clinical feature present in all 24(100%) patients followed by 'B” symptoms in 09(37.5%) cases while bone marrow infiltration was present in 7 (29.1%) patients.Conclusion: Lymphadenopathy serves as a distinctive clinical feature of Hodgkin lymphoma and presence of bone marrow infiltration may be reasonable factor for accurate disease staging.Keywords: Hodgkin lymphoma, lymphoid malignancy, bone marrow infiltration, staging