Intravascular lymphomatosis: a clinicopathological study of two cases presenting as an interstitial lung disease.
OBJECTIVE
Intravascular lymphomatosis is an uncommon type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma characterized by intravascular proliferation of neoplastic lymphoid cells. Although the tumour is basically a systemic disease, eventually involving multiple organs, primary presentation in the lung is rare.


RESULTS
We describe the clinicopathological features of two patients with intravascular lymphomatosis presenting in the lung. One patient complained of fever, headache and chest pain; the other, of dyspnoea on exertion and headache. Both patients showed reticulonodular density on chest radiography and decreased diffusion capacity. Lung biopsy showed features characteristic of intravascular lymphomatosis. Malignant lymphoid cells were CD30 positive T-cells of anaplastic large cell type in one patient and B-cells of large cell type in the other. There was a poor response to chemotherapy and both patients died of the disease within 3 months of diagnosis.


CONCLUSIONS
These cases and 10 previous reports illustrate the need to include intravascular lymphomatosis in the differential diagnosis of interstitial lung disease.
Ko
Y H
YH
Department of Diagnostic Pathology and Internal Medicine, Samsung Medical Centre, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Han
J H
JH
Go
J H
JH
Kim
D S
DS
Kwon
O J
OJ
Yang
W I
WI
Shin
D H
DH
Ree
H J
HJ
D000368:Aged; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D017563:Lung Diseases, Interstitial / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D008228:Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged