The most common type of blood cancer develops in the lymphocytes of white blood cells following a mutation. The abnormal cells multiply faster than the normal ones and travel through the lymphatic system to attack various organs. While there are numerous types of blood cancer, they are categorized into two types — Hodkin lymphoma and non-Hodkin lymphoma. The article below gives a detailed overview of the former.

Hodgkin lymphoma
Among the different types of lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma is a cancer of the lymphatic system. It can be identified via the presence of Reed-Sternberg cells, which are abnormally large B lymphocytes. In the case of Hodgkin Lymphoma, cancer moves from one lymph node to another. It is a curable condition, especially when detected early.

The disease commonly affects two different age groups. Young adults aged between 15 to 35 and older ones aged above 50 are the common targets.

Causes of Hodgkin lymphoma
Different types of lymphoma have different causes, the potential causes for Hodgkin Lymphoma are:

Viruses: Epstein-Barr virus that causes infectious mononucleosis is predicted to be present in 20% to 80% of Hodgkin lymphoma tumors.

Familial: Hodgkin lymphoma often runs in families and affects same-sex siblings. It also affects close relatives of a person with the condition. Children of a parent with the disease are also at a very high risk of developing the disease.

Environment: Sometimes, the environment you grow up in can influence the onset of Hodgkin lymphoma. These usually include single-family homes or growing up with fewer playmates and very few relations. The lack of bacterial and viral exposure at a young age is also considered a prime cause.

Types of Hodgkin lymphoma
There are five different types of Hodgkin lymphoma:

Lymphocyte-rich Hodgkin’s disease
It’s a rare variant of classical Hodkin lymphoma and is usually seen in those with HIV or in older people.

Mixed cellularity Hodgkin’s lymphoma
A subtype of classical Hodgkin lymphoma, it is characterized by the presence of both, lymphocytes and Reed-Sternberg cells. It’s usually seen in men rather than women beyond a certain age.

Nodular lymphocyte-predominant Hodgkin’s disease
The condition accounts for about 5% of lymphoma patients. It starts with the absence of Reed-Sternberg cells and tends to affect people aged between 30 and 50 years. This is also more common in men than in women.

Nodular sclerosis Hodgkin’s lymphoma
It’s the most common type of Hodgkin’s lymphoma and occurs in nearly 5% of lymphoma cases. It’s more prevalent in younger men and develops in the lymph nodes containing scar tissues or sclerosis. However, this disease has a very high cure rate.

Lymphocyte-depleted Hodgkin’s disease
It’s a rare and aggressive type of lymphoma occurring in around 1% of lymphoma cases. It usually develops in most individuals in their 30s. It is characterized by an abundance of Reed-Sternberg cells.