Primary cutaneous lymphomas: single center experience of dermatology and hematology clinics.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To present the clinical characteristics, treatments performed, response to treatment, and follow up of 40 patients diagnosed with primary cutaneous lymphoma. METHODS: In this retrospective study included were 23 males and 17 females from our center with confirmed diagnosis of primary cutaneous lymphoma over an 8-year period. Data were retrieved from the patient medical records. RESULTS: The median patient age at diagnosis was 59.5 years (range 33-86). Skin biopsies showed that 31 patients (77.5%) had mycosis fungoides (MF), 2 (5%) had anaplastic large cell lymphoma, 3 (7.5%) had diffuse large B cell lymphoma, 3 (7.5%) had poikilodermic mycosis fungoides, and 1 (2.5%) had non-classified non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). In patients with T cell lymphoma clinical stage IA prevailed (42.5%). The 3 patients with B cell lymphoma had stage IE and 2 of them had B symptoms. Sezary cells were detectable in the peripheral blood of 3 patients. Twenty-three patients (57.5%) used only topical corticosteroids, 2 (5%) were treated with PUVA (psoralen ultraviolet A), 1 (2.5%) was treated with PUVA and chemotherapy, 8 (20%) received combination chemotherapy, 1 patient (2.5%) received PUVA+ interferon+topical nitrogen mustard, and 1 (2.5%) received chemotherapy+topical nitrogen mustard+interferon. Among 16 patients with the valuable response to treatment 5 (33%) showed complete remission (CR) and 9 (60%) partial remission (PR). The median follow up time for all patients was 1.5 months (range 1-135). While mean overall survival (OS) time was 123 months (95% CI 100.6-145.3), the estimated median OS was not reached. CONCLUSION: Early diagnosis of MF is rather favorable in terms of high and long-term response rates to topical treatments.