SPLENIC LYMPHOMA WITH VILLOUS LYMPHOCYTES - DIAGNOSIS BY FLOW-CYTOMETRY AND IMMUNOCYTOCHEMISTRY

Splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes (SLVL) is a recently describ ed low-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma that may be confused with chronic lymphocytic leukemia and hairy cell leukemia, Herein we report a case of SLVL and show how clinical features, cellular morphology, and flow cytometric analysis are used to distinguish among these three disorder s, A newly developed immunocytochemical technique that allows detectio n of tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase on formalin-fixed, paraffin-e mbedded specimens was useful in refining our diagnosis of SLVL. Establ ishing the precise diagnosis is important because treatment is differe nt for each of the three chronic lymphoproliferative malignancies.