title: Distinction of follicular hyperplasia from follicular lymphoma in B5-fixed tissues: comparison of MT2 and bcl-2 antibodies.
abstract: The distinction between follicular hyperplasia (FH) and follicular lymphoma (FL) is one of the classic problems in diagnostic hematopathology. Both MT2 and bcl-2 antibodies have been reported to be useful in making this distinction. To compare the utility of these two commercially obtained antibodies in paraffin-embedded sections, B5-fixed sections from 21 cases of follicular hyperplasia and from 46 follicular lymphomas were immunostained and the follicles evaluated. Neither MT2 nor the bcl-2 antibody showed definite follicular positivity in FH. In contrast, 66% of FLs were MT2 positive and 89% were bcl-2 positive (P < .02). MT2 staining was equivocal in 30% of FHs and 7% of FLs, whereas bcl-2 staining was equivocal in only one FL. In addition, MT2 staining was unsatisfactory in three cases. CD10 was negative (0% to 3%) in the three bcl-2-negative FLs tested and positive (> 10%) in 26 of 38 bcl-2-positive cases. These results demonstrate the utility of the commercially obtained bcl-2 antibody in distinguishing FL from FH in B5-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections. They also illustrate the superiority of the bcl-2 antibody over MT2, which was less sensitive and more problematic to interpret.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, OH.
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Utz
authors.forename: S H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Swerdlow
mesh_terms: D000906:Antibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D017252:CD3 Complex / Q000032:analysis; D005871:Castleman Disease / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008224:Lymphoma, Follicular / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D015260:Neprilysin / Q000032:analysis; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D000906:Antibodies; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D017252:CD3 Complex; D011518:Proto-Oncogene Proteins; D019253:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-bcl-2; D015260:Neprilysin