IDENTIFICATION OF A FAVORABLE SUBGROUP OF PATIENTS WITH GENERALIZED IMMUNOCYTOMAS BY FOLLICULAR DENDRITIC CELLS

In the present study, 89 patients with generalized immunocytoma were a nalyzed retrospectively for the prognostic influence of clinical featu res and of immunophenotype using bone marrow biopsies. Univariate anal ysis selected the following variables as significant for survival: age over 60 years (p = 0.021), Rai and Binet stage (p = 0.008 and 0.004, respectively), presence or absence of follicular dendritic cells (FDC, p = 0.036), presence or absence of anemia (p = 0.037). Multivariate r egression analysis showed independent prognostic significance of age ( p = 0.001), Rai stage (p = 0.003), and the presence of follicular dend ritic cells (p = 0.010). Comparing CD5 positive and CD5 negative immun ocytomas, no survival advantage for one of the two groups was seen. Pr esence of follicular dendritic cells clearly identified a favorable pr ognostic subgroup: of the 89 patients presented, only three of 18 (16. 6%) with detectable FDC in bone marrow died within the observation per iod, as compared to 34 of 71 (52.1%) patients without FDC. Multivariat e analysis emphasized the independent prognostic value of the presence of FDC. The high predictive capacity of follicular dendritic cells co uld add useful information to the commonly used Rai and Binet staging systems for immunocytoma.