Staging laparotomy for Hodgkin's disease.

The advantages of staging laparotomy in Hodgkin's disease include accurate staging and elimination of the need for prophylactic radiation therapy to the upper part of the abdomen and spleen in those patients who did not undergo exploration, thereby decreasing the chance of a complication of therapy. The disadvantages of laparotomy include the morbidity of the procedure as well as its attendant inconvenience and cost.