title: Immunophenotyping of low-grade B-cell lymphoma in blood and bone marrow: poor correlation between immunophenotype and cytological/histological classification.
abstract: Results of immunophenotypic examinations of peripheral blood and/or bone marrow (BM), involved in low-grade B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphomas, were compared with the results of cytomorphological and histopathological examinations in 133 adult patients. 69 cases of chronic B-lymphocytic leukaemia (B-CLL), 16 centrocytic (CC) lymphomas, 14 centroblastic-centrocytic (CB/CC) lymphomas, 15 immunocytomas (IC), 10 cases of hairy cell leukaemia (HCL), four prolymphocytic leukaemias (PLL), two B-CLL in transformation, one splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes (SLVL), one hairy cell leukaemia variant (HCL-V), and one lymphocytic lymphoma (LC) were classified according to the Kiel and/or FAB classification. Leukaemic disease was found in 105 cases. The following markers were used for immunocytology (APAAP technique) of blood and/or BM smears: CD19, CD5, CD10, CD11c, CD14, CD21, CD22, CD23, CD25, CD38 and TdT. All cases tested showed CD19, but no TdT expression. Every case of HCL had a distinct phenotype with expression of CD11c, CD22 and CD25 and the lack of CD5 and CD23 antigens. In all other NHL cases a very heterogenous expression of CD-antigens with no significant correlations to the cytomorphological subtypes was found. The expression of CD5 is a frequent but inconstant finding in lymphoproliferative diseases other than B-CLL, so 50% of CB/CC, 75% of CC and 80% of IC were CD5 positive. Our results indicate that, with the exception of HCL, the diagnostic relevance of immunophenotyping for the classification of cytomorphologically and histopathologically defined subtypes in blood and/or BM is of very limited value.
authors.affiliation: Klinik I für Innere Medizin, Köln, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schwonzen
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pohl
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Steinmetz
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Seckler
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Vetten
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thiele
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Wickramanayake
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Diehl
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000032:analysis; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016130:Immunophenotyping; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000145:classification* / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD