To Analyse the Differentiation and Grading of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma by Immunohistochemical Expression of CD20, CD3 and Ki67 in Lymph Node

ABSTRACT

Immunophenotyping, although has emerged indispensable in the diagnosis and classification of lymphoid neoplasms, has to be used cautiously with knowledge of the antibodies used. No antigen is totally lineage or lymphoma specific, and for this reason, immunostaining must be performed in the context of a panel. In addition, familiarity with the diagnostic criteria and differential diagnosis of each lymphoid tumor and ultimately correlation with morphology, and clinical history are essential to enhance the diagnostic accuracy and reproducibility. AIM: The present retrospective study aimed to analyse the differentiation and grading of Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma by immunohistochemical expression of CD20, CD3 and Ki-67 in lymph node. Methods: A total of 50 samples of NHL were included in the study. Written informed consent of the patient was taken where ever required in the vernacular. Relevant history of the patient was also taken as per the proforma attached along with. The tissues were stained with H and E staining, CD20, CD 3 and Ki-67 immunostaining. The positive immunostained slides were then evaluated and scored both qualitatively and quantitatively. Results: In the present study a total of 50 samples of NHL were included with an age range from 12 to 72 years and a mean age of 46.54 years and male predominance.45 cases showed immunopositivity for CD 20, showing that they belong to B cell phenotype and only 5 cases showed immunopositivity for CD 3, thus showing T cell phenotype. The mean Ki-67 for B cell lymphoma patients was 47.86 ±28.04,with a minimum score of 2 and a max score of 92 and for T cell lymphoma patients was 61.4±18.02, with a minimum score of 40 and a max score of 81, but there was no significant correlation between them (P=0.382). Conclusion: Ki-67 expression in NHL can help in monitoring of patients at risk and can to some extent also aid in detecting the degree of aggressiveness of the disease to give suitable treatment but Ki-67 alone cannot be a risk factor in NHL patients and other factors such as age, sex and type of NHL can be affective, too. The outcome of further analyzing the association between Ki-67 expression and the prognosis of various subtypes of lymphoma should be supported.