Hodgkin's disease

Hodgkin's disease, or lymphadenoma, form of cancer affecting the lymphatic system. It was named for Thomas Hodgkin, the English physician who first described the disease in 1832. It usually causes swelling of lymph glands in the neck, armpits, or the groin. The lymph glands manufacture lymphocytes, a type of white blood cell that fights the spread of infection. In Hodgkin's disease, these cells proliferate in a variety of abnormal forms, leaving the body with fewer normal lymphocytes to fight infection. As the disease progresses, the body becomes less able to combat infections, and damage to vital organs occurs.

See also: Lymphatic system.