<p>NON-HODGKINS LYMPHOMA (NHL) is a malignancy of B and T lymphocytes. In the UK, its incidence is around 8.2 per 100,000 each year (Leukaemia Research Fund 1990). Most NHL malignancies fall into two broad categories: the nodular, indolent type, and the diffuse aggressive lymphomas (Jones and Bartlett 1997). The histology of these lymphomas has led to the Rappaport Staging Classification which categorises them as low, intermediate and high grade (Box 1).</p>