Primary CD30(Ki-1)-positive anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) is considered by some to be a distinct clinicopathologic entity associated with the t(2;5) (p23;q35). However, the specificity of t(2;5) for ALCL has not been carefully studied. Therefore, we performed a detailed analysis of all cases of ALCL with abnormal cytogenetics results in the Nebraska Lymphoma Study Group registry, as wel...

Anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL) is a distinct clinicopathologic variant of intermediate grade non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL) composed of large pleomorphic cells that usually express the CD30 antigen and interleukin (IL)-2 receptors, and is characterized by frequent cutaneous and extranodal involvement. With variable frequency ALCL bear the t(2;5)(p23;q35) chromosomal translocation that fus...

Translocations involving the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene locus on chromosome 2p23 were first described in anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL). Although most commonly fused to the nucleophosmin (NPM1) gene on chromosome 5q35, which results in the t(2;5)(p23;q35)/NPM1-ALK translocation, several other ALK translocation partners have meanwhile been identified. Furthermore, apart from AL...

We report on three patients with interstitial deletions of the long arm of chromosome 2 involving bands 2q32.1-q35. They presented with wide-ranging phenotypic variation including facial dysmorphisms, cleft palate, learning difficulties, behavioural issues and severe heart defects. Microarray analysis confirmed an 8.6 Mb deletion in patients 1 and 2 and a 24.7 Mb deletion in patient 3. We discu...

Correspondence: Pierangelo Spedini, M.D., Divisione di Medicina II, Sezione di Ematologia, Istituti Ospitalieri di Cremona, viale Concordia 1, 26100 Cremona, Italy. Phone: international +39-0372-405248 – Fax: international +39-0372-405655 A35-year old man was referred to our hospital because of fever. At clinical evaluation a cerebriform neoformation was found in the right breast (Figure 1); th...

Histiocytic sarcoma (HS) is a neoplasm derived from histiocytes. Its diagnosis was not clear until its immunohistochemistry profile was correctly established. Not much is known about its genetic properties. We report a case of a 48-year-old male patient whose bone marrow was almost completely occupied by monomorphic medium size neoplastic cellularity. Its immunohistochemical profile was CD68(+)...

In the pediatric cancer alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, characteristic t(2;13)(q35;q14) or variant t(1;13)(p36;q14) chromosomal translocations generate PAX3-FKHR or PAX7-FKHR fusion genes. Using fluorescence in situ hybridization, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction and quantitative Southern blot analyses, we demonstrate that these fusion genes are amplified in 20% of fusion-positive tum...

2 ABSTRACT While most ALK-positive Non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL) are of T-cell lineage, a small number of B-lineage tumors with plasmablastic morphology and expression of the full-length ALK protein have been described in the literature. All of these reported tumors lacked the NPM-ALK fusion transcript. There is controversy regarding the existence of ALK fusion-positive B-cell NHL, many investiga...