title: T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma presenting with pleural effusion: A case report.
abstract: Adult lymphoblastic lymphoma (LBL) is an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma occurring in predominantly adolescent and young adult men, accounting for 1% to 2% of all non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. In contrast to B-LBL, T-cell LBL is much more common, accounting for up to 90% of disease in adults. Mediastinal mass, pleural and/or pericardial effusions are the major characteristics of T-LBL. We report an 18-year-old male with a pleural effusion, mediastinal mass, a light pericardial effusion, and a normal hemogram. The cytology of the pleural effusion initially suggested malignancy, but definitive diagnosis was unclear. After a medical thoracoscopy, the partial pleura was picked and immunophenotypic study revealed the following: CD3(+), TdT(+), CD99(+), CD20(-). The patient was finally diagnosed with T-LBL and died only 6 months after that. The case highlight the point that medical thoracoscopy is a safe and accurate diagnostic procedure for pleural diseases, and partial pleura biopsy with immunophenotyping was essential for achieving the correct diagnosis of LBL.
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Xin-Liang
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Fan
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Xiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Xiao-Nan
authors.initials: XN
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Jian-Chu
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Union Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
authors.forename: Qiong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Zhou
keywords: Medical thoracoscopy; Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma; Pleural effusion; T-cell lymphoblastic lymphoma