BLASTIC VARIANT OF MANTLE-CELL LYMPHOMA - CYTOMORPHOLOGIC, IMMUNOCYTOCHEMICAL, AND MOLECULAR-GENETIC FEATURES OF TISSUE OBTAINED BY FINE-NEEDLE ASPIRATION BIOPSY

Mantle-cell lymphoma (MCL) is a rare type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma th at has a moderately aggressive clinical course, generally between that of low-grade and of intermediate-grade lymphomas. However, a small su bset of MCLs, the so-called ''blastic'' variant, exhibits a poor progn osis and an aggressive clinical course. We describe a case of blastic MCL that occurred in a 64-yr-old man and that was diagnosed and accura tely subclassified as blastic MCL on the basis of a fine-needle aspira tion (FNA) biopsy. The aspirate smears showed a monotonous population of intermediate-sized lymphocytes with irregular nuclear contours, fin ely dispersed nuclear chromatin, and inconspicuous nucleoli. Material was obtained by FNA for ancillary studies (immunocytochemical stains, flow cytometry, cytogenetics, image analysis, and molecular studies) t hat supported the diagnosis of blastic MCL. Surgical biopsy confirmed the diagnosis. These findings underscore the utility of FNA in diagnos ing lymphomas, particularly when the cytomorphologic examination is co mbined with appropriate ancillary studies. (C) 1998 Wiley-Liss, Inc.