Influence of Extensive Biopsy Sampling at Laparotomy on Planning of Radiotherapy in the Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma

The natural history of the lymphoreticular lymphomas is ill-defined in comparison with Hodgkin’s disease. In an effort to acquire information which would contribute to selection of more rational radiotherapeutic techniques, patients with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma have been subjected to surgical exploration of the abdomen. Lymph nodes suspected of involvement were removed for histologic study together with the spleen and wedge biopsies of the liver. Macroscopically normal lymph nodes also were generously sampled from the aortic-iliac chains, from the porta hepatis, and from the free portion of the mesentery. The findings support the general conclusion that non- Hodgkin’s lymphomas display patterns of anatomical involvement which do not indicate the use of radiotherapy techniques generally employed for the treatment of Hodgkin’s disease.