Introduction to Cutaneous Lymphomas

The term cutaneous lymphoma encompasses an array of neoplasms that vary widely in their clinical presentation, prognosis, histopathology, immunohistochemistry, and molecular biology. The World Health Organization–European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (WHO/EORTC) classification system recognizes 15 primary cutaneous lymphomas (Table 2.1). These lymphomas are divided into three overarching categories: T-cell lymphomas, B-cell lymphomas, and precursor neoplasms. Each chapter in this book is dedicated to one of these cutaneous lymphomas and offers a clinical and histopathologic description, differential diagnosis, and one or more clinical cases. Our intent in writing this book is to familiarize the reader with the most recent classifications of the cutaneous lymphomas, offer relevant clinical and histopathologic characteristics, and provide direction in navigating the often difficult task of distinguishing the various forms of cutaneous lymphoma.