Dermatopathic reaction of lymph nodes in HTLV-1 carriers: a spectrum of reactive and neoplastic lesions.

AIMS: Dermatopathic reaction is a histopathological finding of lymph nodes that usually occurs in patients with inflammatory pruritic cutaneous lesions. However, it is sometimes seen in patients with cutaneous T cell lymphoma. Adult T cell leukaemia/lymphoma (ATLL) is a T cell malignancy caused by infection with human T cell leukaemia virus type I (HTLV-1), which is frequently accompanied by cutaneous lesions. However, the detailed clinicopathological characteristics of the dermatopathic reaction of lymph nodes in ATLL patients and HTLV-1 carriers, addressed in this study, remains to be clarified. METHODS AND RESULTS: We retrospectively analysed 18 nodal lesions with dermatopathic reaction in HTLV-1 carriers. Axillary and inguinal lymph nodes were the primary affected tissues. Three cases with atypical lymphoid cell infiltration were defined as ATLL with dermatopathic reaction (ATLL-D), showing an abnormal T cell immunophenotype and T cell monoclonality. Two of the three ATLL-D patients died 14 and 7 months after diagnosis (the third case had a very short follow-up). The other 15 patients were indistinguishable from reactive lesions and were defined as HTLV-1-associated lymphadenitis with dermatopathic reaction (HAL-D). They showed an indolent clinical course, with only one case eventually transforming to aggressive disease. CONCLUSIONS: Lymph node lesions accompanied by dermatopathic reaction in HTLV1 carriers represent a spectrum that includes reactive and neoplastic conditions. HAL-D should be distinguished from ATLL-D, especially to avoid overtreatment.

Successful Diagnosis by Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgical Lung Biopsy in a Case of Progressive Primary Pulmonary Extranodal Natural Killer/T-cell Lymphoma, Nasal Type: A Case Report.

Malignant pulmonary lymphoma is very rare and the majority of which are B-cell lymphomas. Since primary pulmonary extranodal natural killer (NK)/T-cell lymphoma, nasal type (ENKL) is difficult to diagnose and associated with poor prognosis and aggressive course, some cases are diagnosed at the postmortem autopsy. We report a case of a 53-year-old man with primary pulmonary ENKL diagnosed by video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lung biopsy. This case explains the importance of VATS lung biopsy and in-depth evaluation, including flow cytometry, chromosome, genetic, and immunostaining tests, when primary pulmonary malignant lymphoma is suspected.

Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage and acute eosinophilic pneumonia: A rare form of amiodarone pulmonary toxicity diagnosed by bronchoalveolar lavage.

A 56-year-old man presented with fever, cough, and bloody sputum. He had undergone mitral valve replacement with mechanical prosthesis 14 months prior for mitral valve disease. Subsequently, the patient was taking warfarin and amiodarone. Chest imaging revealed dense, infiltrative shadows, and blood tests showed prolonged prothrombin time and eosinophilia. Warfarin was withdrawn, and antibiotics were started, but bloody sputum and respiratory failure persisted. Considering that eosinophilia was observed after the administration of amiodarone, the drug was discontinued, and bronchoalveolar lavage was performed. Cytology showed foam cells, eosinophils, and hemosiderin-laden macrophages; amiodarone-induced diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH) and acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) were diagnosed, and the patient was treated with corticosteroids. This report describes the first documented case of amiodarone-induced DAH and AEP. When a patient taking amiodarone presents with antibiotic-refractory pneumonia with bloody sputum and eosinophilia, amiodarone-induced DAH and AEP should be considered. Learning objective: We report the first case of amiodarone-induced diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH) and acute eosinophilic pneumonia (AEP) diagnosed by foam cells, eosinophils, and hemosiderin-laden macrophages on bronchoalveolar lavage cytology. When a patient taking amiodarone presents with antibiotic-refractory pneumonia with bloody sputum and eosinophilia, amiodarone-induced DAH and AEP should be considered.