Secondary Chromosome Changes in Mantle Cell Lymphoma: Cytogenetic and Fluorescence in situ Hybridization Studies

To better define the incidence and nature of secondary chromosome anomalies in mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) carrying the t(11;14)/BCL1 rearrangement, cytogenetic and fluorescence in situ hybridization studies (FISH) were performed in 42 patients (39 classical histology, 3 blastoid variant), using 6q21, 9p21/p16, 13q14, 17p13/p53 and chromosome-12-specific probes. Karyotypes from 89 cases published in 5 recent series including patients diagnosed in a homogeneous fashion were reviewed. In our series, FISH confirmed the interpretation of the karyotype in all cases and disclosed cryptic chromosome deletions in a sizeable fraction of cases. One patient (2,4% of total) was found with a cryptic 9p21 deletion by FISH. Two cases (4,8%) had a 6q21 deletion at CCA and at FISH; +12 was found in three cases by CCA plus nine by FISH (28.6%); 13q14 deletion was found in six cases by CCA plus 16 by FISH (52.4%), 17p13 deletion in three cases by CCA plus 8 by FISH (26.2%).In 131 patients (42 present series plus 89 in the li...