[T-cell large granular lymphocyte leukemia after autologous peripheral blood stem cell transplantation for malignant lymphoma-report of three cases and a review of the literature].

There have been only three reports in the literature of T-cell large granular lymphocyte (T-LGL) leukemia occurring after autologous peripheral stem cell transplantation (APBSCT). We describe 3 patients in whom a transient monoclonal T-LGL developed after APBSCT for malignant lymphoma. Case 1: A 58-year-old man with peripheral T-cell lymphoma in second complete remission (CR) who underwent APBSCT. Case 2: A 51-year-old man with follicular lymphoma in second CR who underwent APBSCT. Case 3: A 65-year-old man with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma in second CR who underwent tandem APBSCT. One month after transplant, fever followed by the proliferation of CD8+/CD57+ T-LGL in peripheral blood occurred in all three cases. Because clonal rearrangements of the T-cell receptor were detected in peripheral blood samples, T-LGL leukemia was diagnosed. The first patient had episodes of Epstein-Barr virus viremia. The other patients suffered from cytomegalovirus colitis after APBSCT. These data show that T-LGL leukemia can occur after viral infection followed by APBSCT.

Late onset neutropenia and immunoglobulin suppression of the patients with malignant lymphoma following autologous stem cell transplantation with rituximab.

BACKGROUND: Recently, decrease of immunoglobulin concentrations or neutrophil counts were reported in some cases several months after administration of rituximab. We examined a number of episodes of late onset neutropenia or immunoglobulin decrease in patients with malignant lymphoma who were in complete remission following autologous transplantation with or without rituximab. METHOD: Patients with follicular lymphoma and diffuse large B cell lymphoma transplanted with or without rituximab in our institutes were analyzed. Immunoglobulin concentrations and neutrophil counts after transplantation, both with and without rituximab were measured serially. RESULTS: Four weeks after transplantation, blood samples revealed lower concentrations of IgG and IgA in the rituximab group than in the non-rituximab group. Neutrophil numbers did not fall below 0.5x10(9) /L four weeks or more after transplantation in the non-rituximab group. Neutrophil numbers dropped below 0.5x10(9) /L in 6 of 14 cases in the rituximab group. CONCLUSION: Although the present study was retrospective and disease composition and pre-transplantation regimens differed between the two groups, the addition of rituximab to autologous transplantation might bring about a decrease of immunoglobulin levels and transient LON.