If no B symptoms are present, the letter A is added to the stage. PET uses a radioactive form of sugar, or FDG, which is taken up, in general, by Hodgkin lymphoma cells quite well, or as clinicians say, with high avidity. Whether you or someone you love has cancer, knowing what to expect can help you cope. Hodgkin lymphoma is one of several lymphoma types that are considered the most curable. Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walks, Five Ways to Help Reduce Your Breast Cancer Risk, Imaging tests, which typically include a chest x-ray, CT scan of the chest/abdomen/pelvis, and PET scan, Bone marrow aspiration and biopsy (sometimes, but not always done). It helps determine how serious the cancer is and how best to treat it. Limiting processed foods and red meats can help ward off cancer risk. If any organ that does not belong to the lymph system is involved, it is denoted with an 'E' after the stage. Compared with conventional imaging, the use of PET/CT at baseline can influence staging and lead to a different treatment in a substantial number of cases. You will often find some additional letters used with the stage to describe the lymphoma. Until we do, we’ll be funding and conducting research, sharing expert information, supporting patients, and spreading the word about prevention. In addition, an organ not in the lymph system may be involved close to the involved nodes. Cancer.org is provided courtesy of the Leo and Gloria Rosen family. For instance, PET may reveal disease in normal-sized lymph nodes and help to evaluate disease that is outside of the lymph nodes, but not evident on CT. PET is often combined with CT to allow a comparison of areas of higher radioactivity on the PET scan with the more detailed appearance of that area on the CT. Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Anatomical staging—viewing where in the body the lymphoma is present and growing—is especially important in HL, not only because it helps inform the treatment decision, but also because it helps predict the overall prognosis. Often, patients may have fever, weight loss, or excessive night sweats as symptoms. Our team is made up of doctors and oncology certified nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as journalists, editors, and translators with extensive experience in medical writing. There are five types of Hodgkin lymphoma, or HL. The most widely used currently is the Lugano staging classification, which also separately defines criteria for response to treatment assessed by PET-CT or by CT alone.. Townsend W, Linch D. Hodgkin's lymphoma in adults. So, more patients may be getting the treatment they need. The disease is present in only one group of lymph nodes, or, more rarely, in a single organ that does not belong to the lymph system. Because PET/CT is good for staging and response assessment during and after therapy, it is also being used to try to optimize therapy. Such scanning is associated with potential benefits but also potential risks from a substantial radiation dose and cancer risk. Hodgkin and Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma. Available Every Minute of Every Day. HL is in lymph nodes above the diaphragm and in the spleen. Whether you want to learn about treatment options, get advice on coping with side effects, or have questions about health insurance, we’re here to help. Generally, staging is a system of categorizing an individual's disease into groups, or stages, which depend on how far the disease has spread and how much of the cancerous disease is already established in the body at the time of diagnosis and treatment planning. Resistant or recurrent HL is not part of the formal staging system, but doctors or nurses might use these terms to describe what's going on with the lymphoma in some cases. In general, the results of imaging tests such as PET and CT scans are the most important when determining the stage of the lymphoma. If it spreads, it's usually to another set of nearby lymph nodes. For limited stage (I or II) HL that affects an organ outside of the lymph system, the letter E is added to the stage (for example, stage IE or IIE). With more and more patients participating in clinical trials, interim scans may be used for a variety of malignancies, including HL, to try to predict the need for a different therapy but are not formally recommended at present. What Is Nodular Sclerosing Hodgkin Lymphoma? Thus, the risk-benefit ratio should be carefully weighed for each individual prior to every study.