Some aspects of malignant tumors of the lymph nodes in Iran

Malignant tumors of the lymph nodes are very widespread in Iran. Out of 15,792 lymph nodes examined during a period of 25 years, in 22% of the cases, the diagnosis was a primary malignancy, and in 10% we had metastatic deposits. Out of 40,690 cancer cases diagnosed in pathology laboratories in Tehran, 8.4% were primary malignant tumors of lymph nodes, with a sex ratio of 3:1. The anatomical distribution of malignant lymph nodes shows 46% in the head and neck, with 17% deep in mediastinal or mesenteric areas. The histological typing of these malignancies shows 40% to be Hodgkin's disease, and 60% sarcoma. The distribution by age group shows that these malignant tumors are observed in patients of all age groups, the highest frequency being found between 20 and 54. The statistical data collected in four provinces of Iran, from North to South, reveal that these malignant tumors are observed with the same frequency in other parts of Iran.