Question

Difficulty: MediumPathology and Biopsy Interpretation

A 52-year-old man comes to the clinic for a routine evaluation. He reports feeling generally well but noticed a painless lump in his left axilla 22 months ago that has not resolved. He has no fever, night sweats, or unintentional weight loss. Physical examination reveals a 3.53.5-cm, firm, mobile, non-tender lymph node in the left axilla. The remainder of the examination is unremarkable. An excisional biopsy of the lymph node is performed. The pathology report describes a complete effacement of the normal lymph node architecture by a closely packed, nodular proliferation of cells. High-power microscopic examination shows predominantly small lymphocytes with irregular, cleaved nuclei admixed with a minor population of larger cells with prominent nucleoli. Immunohistochemical staining and flow cytometry demonstrate that the neoplastic cells are positive for CD19, CD20, CD10, and BCL-2, but negative for CD5 and CD23. Based on the histopathologic and immunophenotypic findings, which of the following is the most likely diagnosis?

  1. Follicular lymphomaAnswer
  2. B
    Mantle cell lymphoma
  3. C
    Small lymphocytic lymphoma
  4. D
    Marginal zone lymphoma
  5. E
    Burkitt lymphoma

Answer

Follicular lymphoma
The correct diagnosis is follicular lymphoma. Follicular lymphoma is the most common indolent non-Hodgkin lymphoma and classically presents with painless peripheral lymphadenopathy. Pathologically, it is characterized by a nodular proliferation of centrocytes (small cells with cleaved nuclei) and a variable number of centroblasts (larger cells with prominent nucleoli). Because it originates from the germinal center, it expresses CD10. It is distinguished from reactive follicular hyperplasia by the overexpression of the anti-apoptotic protein BCL-2, which is driven by the t(14;18)t(14;18) chromosomal translocation. Characteristically, follicular lymphoma is negative for CD5 and CD23.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the patient's clinical presentation.
The patient is an asymptomatic middle-aged adult presenting with isolated, painless, persistent lymphadenopathy, suggesting an indolent lymphoproliferative disorder.
Establishing the clinical tempo helps frame the differential diagnosis toward low-grade lymphomas rather than highly aggressive ones or infectious etiologies.
2
Interpret the microscopic histopathology findings from the biopsy report.
The biopsy shows nodular architectural effacement with small cleaved cells (centrocytes) and larger nucleolated cells (centroblasts).
The nodular growth pattern and the specific cell types strongly point toward a lymphoma of follicular center origin.
3
Correlate histopathology with the provided immunohistochemical (IHC) profile.
The neoplastic cells are mature B-cells (CD19+, CD20+) that express CD10 and BCL-2, but lack CD5 and CD23.
CD10 confirms germinal center origin. BCL-2 positivity (due to the t(14;18)t(14;18) translocation) distinguishes this neoplastic process from reactive follicular hyperplasia. The absence of CD5 rules out mantle cell lymphoma and small lymphocytic lymphoma.

Key Concept

The diagnosis of small B-cell lymphomas relies heavily on integrating histologic patterns (e.g., nodular vs. diffuse) with specific immunohistochemical markers, notably CD5, CD10, CD23, and BCL-2. Follicular lymphoma is classically CD10 positive, BCL-2 positive, and CD5 negative.
Estimated Time:1m 15s
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