Primary cutaneous B-cell lymphoma: an association of chronic hepatitis C infection.
Primary cutaneous B-cell lymphoma is a low-grade malignancy, distinct from other lymphomas in terms of biological activity and response to treatment. We describe a 77-year-old woman with a five-year history of chronic hepatitis C infection who developed a lower-limb lesion over a period of 3 months which was diagnosed as a high-grade cutaneous B-cell lymphoma. Despite a lack of definitive evidence implicating hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the aetiology of lymphomas, there is considerable research which establishes a strong association between these two diseases. On the basis of published research and the demonstration of HCV RNA in the lymphomatous tissue, we consider this to be a rare case of primary cutaneous lymphoma in association with hepatitis C.
McKiernan
S
S
Department of Hepatology, St James's Hospital and Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland.
Pilkington
R
R
Ramsay
B
B
Walsh
A
A
Sweeney
E
E
Kelleher
D
D
D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D016174:Hepacivirus / Q000235:genetics; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000032:analysis; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology
D012367:RNA, Viral