DEL(7Q) IN CHRONIC B-CELL LYMPHOID MALIGNANCIES

Twelve patients with diagnosis of B-cell non-Hodgkin's lymphoma/leukem ia and del(7q) were studied for their clinical, cytogenetic, and molec ular characteristics. Eleven patients were classified as small cell ly mphoma whereas one had a diffuse large cell lymphoma. Lymphoplasmacyti c features were observed in six out of eleven small cell lymphomas. Mo rphologically and immunologically these small cell lymphomas could be classified as chronic lymphocytic leukemia (typical or atypical; 4 cas es), marginal zone lymphoma (splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes ; 1 case), mantle cell lymphoma (2 cases), or nonspecified, non-Hodgki n's lymphoma (4 cases). Eleven of twelve patients presented with perip heral blood and bone marrow involvement. Two of twelve cases showed de l(7q) as the sole anomaly. Two different types of deletions were prese nt: ten cases had del(7)(q21q31) and two cases had del(7)(q31q34). Cas es that could be molecularly investigated did not show any involvement of BCL2, BCL3, or BCL6, and only one case had BCL1 rearrangement. The data indicate that del(7q) is associated with a subset of mature smal l B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders of which some but not all show lymphoplasmatic features. (C) Elsevier Science Inc., 1997.