title: Karyotype studies of cutaneous T cell lymphoma: evidence for clonal origin.
abstract: Neoplastic lymphocytes from 3 patients with widespread cutaneous T cell lymphoma were karyotyped, using a chromosome banding technique. None of the patients had previously received chemotherapy. Morphologically homogeneous populations of abnormal T cells were available from 2 distinct body regions of 2 of the individuals and from the bone marrow of the third. Karyotypes from each of the 3 patients indicated monoclonality of their lymphoma. These observations suggest that extracutaneous dissemination of cutaneous T cell lymphoma involves spread of neoplastic cells derived from a single clone. If future studies can demonstrate that those neoplastic T cells actually localized in the skin are also progeny of a single malignant cell, a widely accepted concept that cutaneous T cell lymphoma is of multifocal origin will have to be reexamined.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002999:Clone Cells / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007621:Karyotyping; D008223:Lymphoma / Q000473:pathology / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000648:ultrastructure*