Epithelioid Granulomas in Hodgkin Disease

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“…In Hodgkin's disease patients there is a trend towards fewer relapses and longer survival [5,20]. In contrast, lung cancer patients [21] and breast cancer patients [22] do not appear to benefit much.…”

Granulomatosis and Cancer

“…Hodgkin's patients presenting with a granulomatous disease have usually a favourable course. Granulomatous disease seems to be a favorable prognosis factor in term of survival and relapse (O'Connell, et al, 1975;Sacks, et al, 1978).…”

“…The etiology of sarcoidosis and sarcoid reactions in malignancy remains uncertain but some speculations have been made (Trikudanathan et al): 1/ induction of robust effector T cell response to a tumor antigen or other products of cancer cells either spontaneously or with treatment that result in T helper 1 response along with secretion of TH1 cytokines; 2/ increased vulnerability to a potential infective agent due to immune system imbalance that occurs with cancer; 3/ radiation therapy and antineoplastic agents might enhance granulomatous reactions in tumors; 4/granulomatous reaction could play an important role in the host's defences against metastatic extension. So granulomatous reaction has been associated for some cancers with a better prognosis (O'Connell et al, 1975) …”

Value of Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology in the Initial Diagnosis of Hodgkin’s Disease

“…The presence of granulomas is so common in HD 33,34 that reactive granulomatous lymphadenopathies are a potential source of confusion. To avoid it, whenever a nodal granulomatous disorder is considered, a detailed search to exclude the characteristic cells of HD should be performed.…”