Clone-specific PCR reveals wide dissemination of gastric MALT lymphoma to the gastric mucosa
✍ Scribed by Ming-Qing Du; Tim C. Diss; Ahmet Dogan; Hong-Tao Ye; Antonella Aiello; Andrew C. Wotherspoon; Lang-Xing Pan; Peter G. Isaacson
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 2000
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 373 KB
- Volume
- 192
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0022-3417
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✦ Synopsis
The development of low-grade gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma is closely associated with Helicobacter pylori infection. Despite its indolent clinical course and prolonged localization to the site of origin, the lymphoma frequently presents with multifocal lesions. However, the true extent of tumour involvement in the gastric mucosa is unclear, since reactive appearing lymphocytic in®ltrates are always present and could contain tumour cells that are not readily identi®able on cytological grounds. Gastrectomy specimens of four MALT lymphoma cases were studied by microdissection and clone-speci®c polymerase chain reaction (CS-PCR) and of a further case with t(1;14)(p22;q32) by immunohistochemistry for BCL10 protein, which acted as a tumour marker for tumour cells carrying the translocation. CS-PCR revealed that tumour cells were commonly present in histologically non-lymphomatous lymphocytic in®ltrates microdissected from areas well separated from tumour lesions. Tumour cells were also frequently found in in®ltrates microdissected from the resection margins. These ®ndings were reinforced by direct identi®cation of tumour cells, as recognized by strong BCL10 nuclear staining, in non-lymphomatous lymphocytic in®ltrates in the case with t(1;14)(p22;q32). The results show that gastric MALT lymphoma disseminates widely within the gastric mucosa without necessarily forming diagnostic lesions.