A comparison of morphologic features, flow cytometry, TCR-V β analysis, and TCR-PCR in qualitative and quantitative assessment of peripheral blood involvement by Sézary syndrome

William G. Morice, Jerry A. Katzmann, Mark R. Pittelkow, Rokea A. El-Azhary, Lawrence E. Gibson, Curtis A. Hanson

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

62 Scopus citations

Abstract

The strengths and weaknesses of various laboratory methods for peripheral blood (PB) Sézary cell quantitation have not been compared rigorously. In this study, manual Sézary cell counting, qualitative and quantitative flow cytometry, T-cell receptor (TCR) Vβ flow cytometry, and TCR polymerase chain reaction were performed on PB specimens from 11 patients with Sézary syndrome (SS), 9 with reactive erythroderma, 6 with mycosis fungoides, and 11 healthy control subjects. These methods identified neoplastic cells in more than 90% of SS cases. The diagnostic specificities of these tests varied; they were enhanced by applying criteria proposed by the International Society for Cutaneous Lymphoma. Comparison of sequentially analyzed specimens from 6 patients with SS revealed that although the absolute number of clonal cells was reduced, in some cases, these cells still constituted the vast majority of the CD4+ T-cell subset, suggesting that quantitative subset analysis might be sufficient to monitor changes in the PB tumor burden.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)364-374
Number of pages11
JournalAmerican journal of clinical pathology
Volume125
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2006

Keywords

  • Dermatopathology
  • Flow cytometry
  • Hematopathology

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pathology and Forensic Medicine

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A comparison of morphologic features, flow cytometry, TCR-V β analysis, and TCR-PCR in qualitative and quantitative assessment of peripheral blood involvement by Sézary syndrome'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this