THE CLINICAL RELEVANCE OF L26, A B-CELL-SPECIFIC ANTIBODY, IN HODGKINS-DISEASE

Although Reed-Sternberg cells and their variants (RS/V) in most cases of Hodgkin's disease (HD) lack lymphocyte-associated antigens, some cases of HD, particularly nodular lymphocyte-predominant HD (NLPHD), contain RS/V cells that appear to be of B-cell origin. This study was designed to test whether differences in clinical presentation and therapeutic response exist between patients with HD of various histologic types whose tumors contain RS/V cells that express antigens recognized by L26, an antibody directed against B lymphocytes, and those that do not. We studied 46 patients with stages I and II HD who were treated with radiotherapy alone between 1969 and 1986. Although the expression of L26 and the other antibodies was not predictive for relapse-free, cause-specific, or absolute survival, the labeling of the RS/V cells with L26, independent of histologic type, was significantly associated with peripheral lymph nodal presentation, male gender, and infradiaphragmatic presentation.