Hodgkin’s disease is a cancer of the lymphatic system (a part of the immune system) which is also called Hodgkin’s lymphoma. It was named for Thomas Hodgkin (1798-1866), the British doctor who first described it in 1832.

In Hodgkin’s lymphoma, cells in the lymphatic system (a circulatory system that contains lymph, not blood, and that does not have an active pump such as the heart) start to grow in an abnormal fashion and they may spread outside the lymphatic system. This adversely affects the immune system.

Hodgkin’s disease used to be 100% fatal, but advances in diagnosing and treating the disease have changed this grim outlook and it is now highly treatable and patients have a real chance for full recovery.

The WHO recognizes two major subtypes:

• nodular lymphocyte predominant
• classic Hodgkin’s disease 

Four subtypes are currently recognized within classic Hodgkin’s disease:

• nodular sclerosis
• lymphocyte-rich classic Hodgkin’s disease
• mixed cellularity Hodgkin’s disease
• lymphocyte depletion Hodgkin’s disease 

Several stages are discerned in Hodgkin’s lymphoma:
Stage I, II, III or IV. The higher the number, the more the disease has spread. The disease also may cause specific symptoms. If those symptoms are absent, an “A” is added. If one or more of these symptoms are present, a “B” is added:

• Fever of 37.5°C or more, seemingly for no reason for 3 days.
• 10% or more unexplained body weight loss during the preceding 6 months
• Night sweats

Patients with level IIB, IIIA, IIIB, IVA or IVB symptoms, or a disease site larger than 10 centimetres are all said to have advanced Hodgkin’s disease.

References:
Hodgkin lymphoma, Merck, July 2008 (retrieved 15 May 2009)
Stage IIB Hodgkin’s lymphoma, University of Florida Shands Cancer Center, 2009 (retrieved 15 May 2009)
Stage III adult Hodgkin lymphoma, National Cancer Institute (retrieved 15 May 2009) 
Lymphocytic lymphomas and Hodgkin’s disease, Eric H. Westin and Dan L. Longo, Samter’s Immunologic Diseases 6th ed., Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2001