Cutaneous manifestations in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Objective To examine and subtype cutaneous lymphoma specimens for diagnosis. Study Design Aspiration smears from skin lesions and lymph nodes diagnosed as non-Hodgin's lymphoma (NHL) on,otology in 6 cases over a period of 1 year were reviewed. Two were follow-up cases of nodal lymphoma and were receiving chemotherapy, during which they developed skin lesions. In 4, the patients had cutaneous lesions as a presenting manifestation. Cytologic findings were correlated with histologic and hematologic findings and immunocytochemical markers for subtyping. Results Patients rangedfi-om 14 to 50 years, with equal sex ratio. All presented with 0. 5-5 cm, multiple nodular, ulcerated and fungating skin lesions at various body sites. The aspirate was satisfactory in all cases. Cytologically, all cases were diagnosed as NHL. They were then immunocytochemistry subtyped as various lymphomas. Conclusion Cutaneous lymphoma should always be considered in the presence of predominantly atypical lymphoid cells in smears from nodular and fungating skin lesions, even in the absence of a definitive clinical diagnosis.