Patent ID: 8211649

Claim:
A method of detecting diagnosing Hodgkin's lymphoma comprising: (a) contacting serum from a patient suspected of having Hodgkin's lymphoma with an agent that binds a soluble Neutrokine-α polypeptide consisting of the amino acid sequence from about amino acid 134 to about amino acid 285 of SEQ ID NO: 2; (b) measuring the expression level of the soluble Neutrokine-α polypeptide in the serum; and (c) comparing the measured expression level of the soluble Neutrokine-α polypeptide with a standard expression level of the soluble Neutrokine-α polypeptide that is less than 0.5 ng/ml, wherein an increase in the expression level of the soluble Neutrokine-α polypeptide in the serum relative to the standard is indicative of Hodgkin's lymphoma, and wherein the agent is selected from the group consisting of: (i) an anti-Neutrokine-α antibody; and (ii) a Neutrokine-α receptor or a soluble Neutrokine-α receptor.