Chromosomes in Hodgkin's disease.

Chromosome studies in lymph nodes from patients with Hodgkin's disease have been limited by the low yield of dividing cells. Of 25 consecutive involved lymph nodes, 12 had no mitotic cells, three had only normal cells, seven had a mixture of normal and abnormal cells, and three had only abnormal cells. Correlating histology with the karyotype, 66% of unsuccessful samples were of the nodular sclerosing type. The majority (58%) of samples with no dividing cells were from previously treated patients. Distinct clones were obtained in samples from only four of ten patients with abnormal cells. Samples from the other six patients had single abnormal cells with bizarre marker chromosomes; these single cells probably represent the only dividing malignant cell. The high failure rate and the low number of clear-cut aneuploid clones in Hodgkin's disease contrast markedly with other lymphomas in which 80% of the samples yield mitotic cells that represent an aneuploid clone in virtually every instance.