Hodgkin's lymphoma in the Bedouin of southern Israel: Epidemiological and clinical features

Background: A previous study on Hodgkin's lymphoma in southern Israel found that Bedouin patients had an increased rate of Epstein-Barr virus expressi on in their tumor cells. Objectives: To determine the influence of the patients' communities on the pattern of disease in HL. Methods: We compared the clinical features, demographic data, stage at diag nosis, treatment modality and outcome, as well as laboratory findings, in f our community-based subgroups. These groups comprised kibbutz residents (n= 11), Bedouin (n=19), new immigrants from the former USSR (n=22), and town-d wellers (n=82). Results: The Bedouin patients differed significantly from the new immigrant s and town-dwellers, particularly regarding the rate of EBV sequences in th e tumor tissues, and a poorer response to treatment. The kibbutz patients d id not differ significantly from the other populations regarding most of th e parameters studied, but showed an intermediate expression of EBV antigens compared to Bedouin patients and the rest of the cohort. Conclusions: This study indicates that HL may behave differently in differe nt population groups in a given geographic area. Notably, the Bedouin patie nts showed markedly different clinical and biological patterns of this mali gnancy.