Intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (IVLBCL) is a very rare form of extranodal lymphoma, characterized by the proliferation of neoplastic B cells within the lumen of small vessels. Due to its high aggressivity, for years the prognosis had been really poor with only anectodical cases of remission after traditional chemotherapy. More recently, new therapeutic protocols allowed a significant increase in overall survival.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHematopoiesis is hosted, supported and regulated by a special bone marrow (BM) microenvironment known as "niche." BM niches have been classified based on micro-anatomic distance from the bone surface into "endosteal" and "central" niches. Whilst different blood vessels have been found in both BM niches in mice, our knowledge of the human BM architecture is much more limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFKimura's disease is a rare chronic inflammatory condition of unknown cause that most frequently affects Asian adults. It is characterized by painless lymphadenopathy in the head and neck region and eosinophilia, often associated with nephrotic syndrome. Α young Asian male presented to our Department with œdema at the lower limbs and scrotum, retroauricular masses, eosinophilia and proteinuria.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFR-Bendamustine is an effective treatment for follicular lymphoma (FL). Previous large trials demonstrated the prognostic role of the molecular minimal residual disease (MRD) during the most frequently adopted chemotherapeutic regimens, but there are not yet conclusive data about the effect of combination of rituximab (R) and bendamustine in terms of MRD clearance. Thus, the aim of this retrospective study was to assess if and in what extent the combination of rituximab and bendamustine would exert a significant reduction of the molecular disease in 48 previously untreated FL patients.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBACKGROUND Ceruminous glands are modified apocrine glands, situated in the external auditory canal, that, together with sebaceous glands, produce cerumen, better known as ear wax. The neoplastic transformation of these structures is very rare and there have been few cases reported in the literature. CASE REPORT Syringocystadenoma papilliferum is one of the rarest tumors among benign tumors arising from the ceruminous glands.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOsteoid osteoma (OO) is a benign osteogenic neoplasm, usually affecting children and young adults, that is typically characterized by nocturnal pain and response to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. OO is frequently misdiagnosed because it mimics juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA), bone infection or malignancy. Herein we report the case of a girl who presented with chronic monoarthritis of the knee mimicking JIA.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPersistent polyclonal B-cell lymphocytosis (PPBL) is a rare clinical condition, characterized by a persistent, generally moderate lymphocytosis, generally due to stimulation of central memory B-lymphocytes, and by a moderate increase of polyclonal IgM. In some patients, slight or moderate splenomegaly is observed. A variable percentage of circulating, bone marrow and splenic lymphocytes display an abnormal nucleus (generally bilobated) or are binucleated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTreatment with rituximab, either alone or in combination with antiblastic drugs, causes significant depletion of circulating B-lymphocytes and modifications of B cell maturation in the bone marrow. In the present study, we analyzed the kinetics of hematogones in bone marrow samples from 55 patients suffering from non-Hodgkin lymphomas and treated with rituximab-containing regimens. Maturation arrest at the level of stage 2 hematogones, along with complete depletion of naïve, mature B-lymphocytes, was observed as short-term effects (2 months after completion of chemo-immunotherapy).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDisseminated histoplasmosis is an invasive fungal infection documented in patients with impaired cellular immunity coming from endemic areas (America, Asia, Africa). We report two cases of disseminated histoplasmosis in AIDS patients paradigmatic of the multifaceted nature of the disease, which may be an expression either of an advanced state of immunosuppression or the immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCentral nervous system (CNS) involvement in multiple myeloma (MM) is uncommon. Among its possible presentations, leptomeningeal involvement of MM, also termed central nervous system myelomatosis (CNS-MM) is rare and is characterized by the presence of neoplastic plasma cells in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). So far, 187 cases of CNS-MM have been reported : the great majority of them were diagnosed by cytological assays and flow cytometry was used in only eight cases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA 22-year-old man with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia was referred to our observation for headache, cervical pain and sopor. A computed tomography study revealed triventricular obstructive hydrocephalus due to a left cerebellar hyperdense mass impinging on the fourth ventricle. A magnetic resonance study demonstrated an area of hyperintensity on T2-weighted images, hypointensity on T1, restricted diffusivity and contrast enhancement involving the left hemispherical cerebellar cortex and the vermis and causing cerebellar herniation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHematogones are precursors of B-lymphocytes detected in small numbers in the bone marrow. Flow cytometry is the most useful tool to identify hematogones and, so far, 4-color methods have been published. In addition, flow cytometry is used in the diagnosis and follow-up of lymphomas.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWaldenström macroglobulinemia and multiple myeloma are mature B-cell neoplasms deriving from post-germinal cells at different stages of differentiation. The simultaneous presentation of Waldenström macroglobulinemia and multiple myeloma in the same patient is a very rare phenomenon and, so far, only two cases have been described. We report the case of a 75-year Caucasian female patient, with a silent clinical history, who presented with anemia and two different monoclonal proteins (IgMκ and IgGκ).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Discordant lymphomas are rare entities characterized by the simultaneous presence of two distinct types of lymphomas in different anatomic sites. We describe a very rare case of simultaneous occurrence of splenic mantle cell lymphoma and marginal zone lymphoma involving the bone marrow and peripheral blood.
Case Presentation: We report the case of a 60-year-old asymptomatic Caucasian woman in whom discordant lymphomas were discovered when a slight lymphocytosis and a conspicuous splenomegaly were observed.
Standard chemotherapic approach for MZL is missing. We are presenting our monocenter experience with 2CdA+/-rituximab. Patients received 2CdA, 5mg/m(2), weekly, for 6 weeks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBarrett's esophagus (BE) represents a major risk factor for esophageal adenocarcinoma (AC). For this reason, patients with BE are subjected to a systematic endoscopic surveillance to detect initial evolution towards non-invasive neoplasia (NiN) and cancer, that eventually occurs only in a small fraction of BE patients. This study was aimed to investigate the possible role of glutathione-S-transferase-omega 1 (GSTO1), a recently discovered member of the glutathione-S-transferase family, as a progression marker in the Barrett's disease in order to improve the diagnosis of NiN in BE and to understand the mechanisms of the progression from BE to AC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBranchial cleft anomalies represent a common cause of cervical mass in adults. Describing a case report, we reviewed embryology, clinical elements, and treatment options for parapharyngeal congenital cysts. A case of a parapharyngeal cyst mimicking a tonsillar abscess is presented.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: Helicobacter pylori is causally associated with gastritis and peptic ulcer diseases. Recent data (meta-analysis) have demonstrated that triple therapy with amoxicillin, clarithromycin, and a proton pump inhibitor has an eradication rate of only 74-76% and new therapeutic protocols may be necessary. The aim of this study was to examine whether adding bovine lactoferrin (bLf) and probiotics (Pbs) to the standard triple therapy for H.
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