title: Lymphopenia as a prognostic factor in patients with peripheral T-cell lymphoma, unspecified.
abstract: Peripheral T-cell lymphoma, unspecified (PTCLU) is the most common T-cell lymphoma variant. The molecular heterogeneity of PTCLU is reflected by a diverse clinical course. Several prognostic factors have been studied, but further refinement is needed. The aim of our study was to retrospectively evaluate the presence of lymphopenia, defined as a lymphocyte count of<1000 cells/mm³, as a prognostic factor for survival in patients with PTCLU. Sixty-nine cases with a pathological diagnosis of PTCLU were included in our analysis. Lymphopenia was seen in 38% of the patients and was statistically associated with a worse response to chemotherapy. In univariate analysis, lymphopenia, IPI score>2, and Prognostic Index for PTCLU (PIT) score>2 were associated with a worse overall survival. In multivariate analysis, lymphopenia and a PIT score>2 were the only independent poor prognostic factors, implying an important role of the patient's immune system in both response to therapy and survival.
authors.affiliation: The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Division of Hematology and Oncology, The Miriam Hospital, Providence, RI, USA. jcastillo@lifespan.org
authors.forename: Jorge J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Castillo
authors.forename: Domingo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Morales
authors.forename: Pilar
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Quinones
authors.forename: Esther
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cotrina
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Desposorio
authors.forename: Brady
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Beltran
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D016411:Lymphoma, T-Cell, Peripheral / Q000145:classification / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D008231:Lymphopenia / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult