Composite mantle cell and primary cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma: case report and review of the literature.

Abstract

We describe the first reported occurrence of a composite cutaneous lymphoma involving a mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) and primary cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma. The lesion occurred in a 76-year-old man with longstanding MCL who developed nodular skin lesions on his trunk and extremities. Biopsy revealed a CD30-positive lymphoma with pathological features characteristic of cutaneous anaplastic large cell lymphoma in the superficial dermis and a subjacent deposit of MCL in the deep dermis and subcutaneous adipose tissue. Immunophenotyping demonstrated T versus B lymphoid origin, respectively, for the 2 neoplasms, and fluorescence in situ hybridization demonstrated an 11;14 chromosomal translocation exclusively in the MCL. These results argue that the lymphomas represented clonally distinct neoplasms. Our case illustrates the extreme diversity associated with the cutaneous manifestations of lymphoid neoplasia and in particular of composite lymphomas, which present diagnostic challenges for clinicians and pathologists alike.