Three subgroups of a single type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, which Mayo Clinic researchers have
identified, have different survival rates and could not be differentiated by routine pathology.
Researcher Andrew L. Feldman, MD, and colleagues
said they recommend that all patients with ALK-
negative anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) should take a novel genetic test, called fluorescence in
situ hybridization, which can differentiate the three subgroups.
According to the study published in the
journal
Blood, patients with TP63 rearrangements in their lymphomas had a 17% survival rate of 5 years beyond diagnosis. Patients whose lymphomas had DUSP22 rearrangements had a survival rate
of 90%. A third group of tumors with neither
rearrangement had an intermediate survival rate.
Feldman said this is the first study of its kind. Although ALCL is a rate type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma
,
the disease is a more common subtype of T-cell lymphoma. All ALCLs are treated the same with
chemotherapy and in some cases stem cell transplantation.
Due to the study's findings, there should be more
testing and possible changes in standard care should. Feldman said that therapies tailored to
individual patients can occur once tests that can differentiate how the tumors differ are developed.
New Routine Testing for Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas Recommended
A Mayo Clinic-led group of researchers has discovered three subgroups of a single type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma that have markedly different survival rates. These subgroups could not be differentiated by routine pathology but only with the aid of novel genetic tests, which the research team recommends giving to all patients with ALK-negative anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL). Findings are published in the journal Blood.
Patients whose lymphomas had TP63 rearrangements had only a 17% chance of living five years beyond diagnosis, compared to 90 percent of patients whose tumors had DUSP22 rearrangements. A third group of tumors, those with neither rearrangement, was associated with an intermediate survival rate.
From Newswise
