INFRADIAPHRAGMATIC HODGKINS-DISEASE

Between 1968 and 1994, 133 patients with stages I and II supradiaphrag matic Hodgkin's disease were evaluated at our institution. During the same period we treated only 11 patients with stages I and II infradiap hragmatic Hodgkin's disease. When compared to patients with disease ab ove the diaphragm, patients with Hodgkin's disease below the diaphragm were more frequently male (p < 0.05), were generally older (46.3 vs 4 0.1 years, but the difference was not significant), had a higher incid ence of systemic symptoms (p < 0.05), and had predominantly histologic subtypes with mixed cellularity and lymphocyte predominance. Primary treatment included inverted Y radiotherapy in 3 patients, polychemothe rapy in 6, and combined treatment in 2. Ten patients achieved complete response. Five- and ten-year survival rates were 90% and 67.5%, respe ctively. There was no difference in survival rate between patients wit h infradiaphragmatic and supradiaphragmatic Hodgkin's disease receivin g similar treatment.