Primary Effusion Lymphoma
Definition
- HHV8 positive large B cell lymphoma involving serous lined body cavities without formation of a tumor mass
Alternate/Historical Names
- Body cavity based lymphoma
Diagnostic Criteria
- Large cell lymphoma involving body cavity
- No tumor mass present
- Cells may be adherent to surface with invasion
- No lymphadenopathy or organomegaly
- Large irregular nuclei with prominent nucleoli
- Immunoblastic or plasmablastic appearance
- Abundant basophilic cytoplasm
- No tumor mass present
- HHV8 positive
- B lineage by gene rearrangement study
- May be negative by immunologic stains
- Very rare T lineage cases have been reported
- Rare HIV negative, HHV8 negative cases associated with Hepatitis C
- Rare extra-cavitary lymphomas reported with same clinical, viral and immunologic characteristics
Yasodha Natkunam MD PhD
Robert V Rouse MD
Department of Pathology
Stanford University School of Medicine
Stanford CA 94305-5342
Original posting:: May 1, 2006