Early TCR-beta and TCR-gamma PCR detection of T-cell clonality indicates minimal tumor disease in lymph nodes of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma: diagnostic and prognostic implications.

The lymph nodes are generally the first extracutaneous manifestation in patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL); however, their early involvement is difficult to assess. The aim of our study was to define the diagnostic and prognostic value of T-cell clonality analysis for a more precise assessment of lymph node involvement in CTCL. T-cell clonality was determined by 2 independent polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays, namely a recently developed T-cell receptor-beta (TCR-beta) PCR technique as well as an established TCR-gamma PCR. T-cell clonality was found in 22 of 22 lymph nodes with histologically detectable CTCL involvement as well as in 7 of 14 histologically noninvolved dermatopathic lymph nodes. The clonal T-cell populations in the lymph nodes were in all cases identical to those detected in the corresponding skin lesions, identifying them as the tumor cell population. T-cell clonality was not found in any of the 12 dermatopathic lymph nodes from 12 patients with inflammatory skin diseases. Clonal T-cell detection in 7 of 14 dermatopathic lymph nodes of patients with CTCL was associated with limited survival (74 months; confidence interval [CI], 66-82 months) as in patients with histologically confirmed lymph node involvement (41 months; CI, 35-47 months), whereas all patients without T-cell clonality in the lymph nodes (7 patients) were alive at the last follow-up. Thus, T-cell clonality analysis is an important adjunct in differentiating benign dermatopathic lymphadenitis from early CTCL involvement.