Genetic Study of Families With High Frequency of Hodgkin Lymphoma

Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) is a relatively rare disorder with known familiar aggregation (i.e. HL in more than one child, or parent and child). Because affected individuals in familial HL are genetically related, the existence of such families has long been considered as evidence in support of a genetic basis of HL susceptibility. However, it is largely unknown which genetic variations are responsible for recurring HL in families. Because the effects of genetic variants are likely to be strong in familial HL, identification of such variations will potentially reveal biological pathways critical to the pathogenesis of HL. PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: * To perform genome-wide sequencing of families with recurring Hodgkin lymphoma cases (affected as well as non-affected family members) to identify potential disease-causing germline genetic variations. SECONDARY OBJECTIVE: * To describe demographic and clinical features of the affected families.