Hematolymphoid malignancies are classified by the cell lineage and maturation stage of origin: leukemias arise in the bone marrow (acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemia from immature/blast cells; chronic lymphocytic and myeloid leukemia from more mature cells), lymphomas arise from mature lymphocytes in the lymphatic system (Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin), and myelomas arise from malignant plasma cells producing a monoclonal immunoglobulin ("M protein"). A defining principle is clonality—malignant populations derive from a single transformed cell and thus express identical surface markers or produce identical antibody, distinguishing them from normal polyclonal populations, situating this content within tumor immunology as a subfield of immunology.
Hematolymphoid malignancies are classified by the cell lineage and maturation stage of origin: leukemias arise in the bone marrow (acute lymphoblastic and myeloid leukemia from immature/blast cells; …