CA: A Cancer Journal for Clinicians, Vol 32, 144-161, Copyright
© 1982 by American Cancer Society
Burkitt's Lymphoma
John L. Ziegler M.D.1
1 Associate Chief of Staf for Education of Veterans Administration Medical Center in San Francisco, California.
The study of Burkitt's lymphoma in the past two decades serves as an example of medical serendipity, a model for clinical advances in cancer management, and a catalyst for discoveries in viral oncology and immunobiology. It is to the great credit of modern biomedical science that the many investigative implications of an unusual tumor discovered in a remote area of the world were so rapidly and effectively pursued.
Burkitt's lymphoma now ranks with the dozen neoplasms that can be cured by drugs alone. This tumor is the leading candidate for a virus-induced human tumor; studies of this association led to the discovery of EBV as the cause of infectious mononucleosis.
Finally, the study of immunobiology and tumor immunology has been greatly furthered by experimental and clinical studies of Burkitt's lymphoma. All these discoveries lead to new hypotheses that will ensure the continued study and understanding of this fascinating disease.
