Abstract
Sixty-one patients with malignant lymphoma were investigated for bone marrow involvement by only marrow aspiration initially, and subsequently bone marrow aspiration and Jamshidi bone marrow needle biopsy. Bone marrow involvement was found in 6/50 (12%) patients with RCS, 2/2 (100%) with lymphosarcoma, and 1/9 (11%) with Hodgkin's disease. Bone marrow was involved in one patient with CS II lymphosarcoma, 4/16 with CS III and 4/20 with stage IV. In total 5 of the 41 patients (12%) was found to have been down-staged. 42 procedures of bone marrow needle biopsy and bone marrow aspiration in the same patients and at the same time were performed. 9 procedures were found to be positive for bone marrow involvement by marrow needle biopsy while only 2 of these positive by bone marrow aspiration. Accordingly, it is suggested that marrow needle biopsy is superior to the bone marrow aspiration. Anemia and/or thrombocytopenia found in 6 of 9 patients with initial marrow involvement.
