CARBAMAZEPINE-INDUCED LYMPHADENOPATHY MIMICKING KI-1 (CD30-CELL LYMPHOMA() T)

A 22 year old male receiving carbamazepine for a bipolar affective dis order presented with pyrexia, generalized rash, lymphadenopathy and he patosplenomegaly. He was thrombocytopenic and liver function tests rev ealed a hepatitic picture. Lymph node histology suggested a T-cell lym phoma with many large cells possessing blastic features, and expressin g CD3 and CD30 antigens, The abnormalities resolved completely within nine weeks of discontinuing carbamazepine, indicating that the present ing lymphadenopathy was secondary to lymphoid activation, ie; a pseudo lymphoma rather than a malignant lymphoma, This is the first reported case of carbamazepine-induced lymphadenopathy with CD30+ cells, It ill ustrates the potential danger of relying too heavily on CD30 positivit y as an indicator of malignancy.