Lymphocytic predominant Hodgkin's disease or type I Hodgkin's disease (paragranuloma of Poppema-Lennert): a clinicopathological entity. Study of 21 cases and review of the literature

We have studied clinical and pathological features of a series of 21 patien ts followed at the hospital Saint-Louis for a nodal nodular lymphocytic pre dominant Hodgkin's disease or para-granuloma of Poppema-Lennert. Histopatho logically, all these lymph nodes were involved by a nodular proliferation o f atypical cells, called << pop corn >> cells with a B cell phenotype, admi xed with small lymphocytes. Clinically, most patients were young males. The disease was localized except in one case and the prognosis good (only one death). However, one patient relapsed and another developped an aggressive lymphoma. These results were in keeping with different studies in the liter ature and confirmed that the paragranuloma is a clinicopathological entity, distinct from the classical Hodgkin's disease. Nowadays, it's strongly sug gested that the << pop corn >> cell is of centroblastic origin. Treatment r emains controversial, however, according to most of the authors, patients w ith localized disease could be followed without treatment after surgical ex cision.