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Background: Monoclonal T-cell receptor (TCR) rearrangement is detected in 57-75% of early-stage mycosis fungoides (MF) at diagnosis. A retrospective study showed molecular residual disease (MRD) in 31% of patients in complete clinical remission (CR) after 1 year of treatment., Objectives: To confirm the frequency of MRD at 1 year and to determine its prognostic value for further relapse., Methods: Patients with T1-, T2- or T4-stage MF were prospectively included in this multicentre study. At diagnosis, clinical lesions and healthy skin were biopsied. After 1 year of topical treatment, previously involved skin of patients in CR was biopsied for histology and analysis of TCR-γ gene rearrangement. The results were compared with the clinical status each year for 4 years., Results: We included 214 patients, 133 at T1, 78 at T2 and three at T4 stage. At diagnosis, 126 of 204 cases (61·8%) showed TCR clonality in lesional skin. After 1 year, 83 of 178 patients (46·6%) still being followed up were in CR and 13 of 63 (21%) showed MRD. At 4 years, 55 of 109 patients (50·5%) still being followed up were in CR and 44 of 109 (40·4%) were in T1 stage. MRD did not affect clinical status at 4 years (CR vs. T1/T2, P = 1·0; positive predictive value 36·4%; negative predictive value 67·6%)., Conclusions: T-cell clonality at diagnosis and MRD at 1 year are not prognostic factors of clinical status at 4 years., (© 2015 British Association of Dermatologists.)

The diagnosis of skin lesions of mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) may be difficult at the onset of the disease. We observed 2 patients with papules of the trunk and 1 with diffuse infiltration of the trunk and the face and 2 subcutaneous nodules. Skin samples showed diffuse infiltration of the dermis (n = 1) or perivascular infiltration (n = 2). The infiltrate corresponded to centrocytic cells (n = 2) or pleomorphic blastoid cells (n = 1) with a B-cell phenotype: CD3-, CD5+ (2/3), CD20+, CD23-, and CD43+. In only 1 case was cyclin D1 immunoreactivity detected, and the t(11;l4)(q13;q32) breakpoint was amplified from both lymph node and skin DNA. Competitive reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction was not contributive for skin specimens. In all 3 cases, interphase fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) demonstrated t(11;14) fusion signals either on paraffin sections or on fresh frozen touch preparations of skin biopsies. The recognition of skin lesions of MCL from other B-cell infiltrates can be established by interphase FISH.

Some recurrent chromosomal abnormalities have recently been found to be associated with distinctive histologic subtypes of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). In a study of 62 patients with NHL whose karyotypes was determined at diagnosis, 3 patients were found to have a deletion of the long arm of chromosomes 14 at band 22 (del[14][q22]). All had a diffuse lymphoma with generalized lymphadenopathy and bone marrow involvement. All three lymphomas were of B-cell origin, as shown by the presence of surface immunoglobulin and monoclonal antibody phenotyping. For each patient, a trisomy 12 was associated with del(14)(q22) in a clone. These data suggest that del(14)(q22), perhaps in association with trisomy 12, could identify a subtype of NHL and that band 22 of chromosome 14 may be implicated in the B-cell ontogeny.