Non –Hodgkin lymphoma in Sudanese Children

Abstract

Background: Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma is a very heterogeneous  lymphoproliferative disease with clinical and histological pattern different from children to adults.
Objective: To characterize the clinical and pathological pattern of Non -Hodgkin`s lymphoma among Sudanese children.
Materials and Methods: This study was undertaken prospectively on paediatric cases (≤16 years) referred to histopathology department, Radio-Isotope Centre, Khartoum which is the main Centre for cancer  management in Sudan from January 2008 to December 2012. The clinical and demographical data of these patients were recorded. The H&E stained slides of each case were examined initially, then the confirmed cases of non-Hodgkin`s lymphoma were classified according to the 2008 WHO classification of neoplastic diseases of the haematopoietic lymphoid tissue following immunostaining of sections cut from formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue blocks with the following panel of antibodies:-
LCA, CD3, CD5, CD10, CD20, CD23, BCL2, CyclinD1, MUM1,CD15,CD30 andKi67.
Results: Age range was 9 months to 16years. Fifty percent of the cases occurred between the age 2-5 years and only one case below one year. Male to female ratio was 1.6. Extranodal lymphoma (60%) was higher than nodal type (40%).The most commonly affected site was the  gastrointestinal tract. Most of the gastrointestinal lymphoma presented with abdominal mass. The most common histological type was Burkitt`s  lymphoma. None of the cases were small lymphocytic, follicular or T- cell type. Bone marrow involvement was in 87.5% of the cases at the time of diagnosis.
Conclusion: Burkitt`s lymphoma is the predominant paediatric lymphoma in Sudan. The majority of the cases presented late with bone marrow involvement.

Key words: Non -Hodgkin`s lymphoma, immunohistochemistry, Paediatric, Sudan.