[Hodgkin's disease. Results in diagnosis and treatment (author's transl)]

Abstract

Optimal treatment in Hodgkin's disease requires the knowledge of the stage the disease has reached. Laboratory tests, x-ray and scintigraphy, usually, are not sufficient, but biopsies of bone marrow and liver are necessary, in special cases supplemented by laparoscopy or explorative laparotomy with splenectomy. As treatment of choice, irradiation is favored for disease restricted to lymph nodes, and cytostatics for disease complicated by severe symptoms or by organ involvement. Diagnosis and therapy should be adapted to the individual patient. New therapeutic approaches must be compared with the sometimes excellent results obtained by several institutions.