Burkitt's tumour in england a comparison with childhood lymphosarcoma

The histological sections of 63 English cases of non‐leukaemic lymphosarcoma of childhood have been reviewed. On histological criteria 50 cases were classified as non‐leukaemic lymphosarcoma, 9 as Burkitt's tumour and in 4 cases an equivocal diagnosis was made. The 9 children diagnosed as having Burkitt's tumour showed a similar clinical and anatomical tumour distribution to cases of Burkitt's tumour described from Africa, with a high incidence of jaw involvement and multiple visceral tumours. In contrast, most of the 50 cases diagnosed as lymphosarcoma presented with superficial lymphadenopathy, tumours of the lymphoid tissue of Waldeyer's ring, mediastinal masses or intussusception. Burkitt's tumour is composed of cells that closely resemble lymphocytes transformed by phytohaemagglutinin. It is suggested that the tumour should be defined and classified on the basis of this cell type. The hypothesis that Burkitt's tumour may be induced by an insect‐vectored virus is based mainly on the distribution of the tumour in tropical Africa. The implication of the English cases of Burkitt's tumour, reported here, is discussed in relation to this hypothesis.