Results and complications of staging laparotomy in Hodgkin's disease

Between 1969 and 1983, 123 patients with Hodgkin's disease underwent a staging laparotomy. The stages of 34 (27%) patients were changed by laparatomy. Twenty-nine patients (23%) were upstaged , five (4%) downstaged . The most considerable change was found in stage III. The accuracy of preoperative lymphangiography was 85%. The postoperative complication rate was 15%. There were no operative deaths. The staging laparotomy for Hodgkin's disease is a reliable procedure, and allows less aggressive therapy in selective groups.