Histologic and immunohistologic diversity of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of lymph node origin

To examine whether nodal non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL) share common features in every nodal site, histologic and immunohistologic findings were analyzed site by site. Cases selected were nodal NHL of neck (17 cases), submandibular (10 cases), inguinal (9 cases), and abdominal cavity (22 cases). No significant differences in age distribution were found. A slight female preponderance was present in cases with inguinal NHL. Histologic and immunohistologic findings showed that nodal NHL were heterogeneous; (1) T-cell type was frequent in the neck but exceptional in other sites, (2) frequency of high-grade tumors was much higher in the intra-abdominal cavity but low in other sites, and (3) follicular lymphoma was common in the submandibular and inguinal regions. Previous studies indicated that histologic and/or immunologic types of NHL correlated with pathogenesis of lymphoma; EB virus and HTLV-1 for B and T lymphomagenesis, respectively, and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) for development of high-grade tumors. The present results may provide an insight to consider as a possible pathogenesis of NHL.