[Anthracosilicosis changes in abdominal lymph nodes in miners]

Ten retroperitoneal lymph node stations obtained from 100 decreased miners exposed to coal dust in the Ruhr district of Germany were submitted to a morphological and morphometrical investigation. In 87% of the cases, dust depositions were detected in at least one of the retroperitoneal lymph nodes. Up to 21% of the lymph nodes revealed dust-induced granulomatous lesions that extended from small, highly cellular dust granulomas to sclerohyaline nodules. The uniform distribution of iron-containing pigments in the lymph nodes argues in favour of an exogenous source. In individual cases, despite relatively small silicotic lesions in the lungs, depositions of dust were detected in the retroperitoneum. This suggest a physiological significance of existing diaphragmatic lymph vessel connections. A comparable distribution of lymph node metastases in 15 patients with malignant tumours of the lungs supports this view. For this reason, differentiated prognostically informative staging schemas of carcinomas of the lungs should therefore also take into account the retroperitoneal lymph node stations.