HIV-negative plasmablastic lymphoma: A report of two cases and review of literature / 解放军医学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the origin, diagnosis, differential diagnosis, treatment, and prognosis of plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL). Methods Based on the retrospective analysis of the clinical data of two patients with PBL admitted to our department from 2009 to 2010, followed by a review of related literatures in China and abroad, we summarized our experience of the diagnosis and treatment of PBL. Results Two patients as reported in this paper were explicitly diagnosed to be HIV negative (-) one presented enlarged lymph nodes, whereas the other presented lesions in the ribs. Both displayed the same morphology characteristics of diffused large cell lymphoma. They also exhibited the typical plasma cell phenotype. Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that the cells stained positively for CD38, CD138, and CD79a, and stained poorly or even negatively for CD20 and PAX-5. PET-CT scans demonstrated that it involved several body parts, such as lymph nodes and bones. CHOP regime, ESHAP, IGVE, and other intensive treatment regimes showed no satisfactory effect. Relapse appeared quickly after a brief remission, and both patients died 2 and 7 months, respectively, after the diagnosis. Conclusions We can conclude that PBL is very rare, but with high malignancy and poor prognosis. PBL patients are of low sensitivity to chemotherapy drugs and exhibit short-time survival. There is no standard chemotherapy regimen for PBL.