Frequency of bcl-2/IgH translocation in patients with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and chronic hepatitis C virus infection.

AIM: It has been previously suggested that t(14;18) translocation of bcl-2 to the immuno-globulin heavy chain (IgH) locus may contribute to pathogenesis of lymphoproliferative disorders related to hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, including type II mixed cryoglobulinemia (MC). METHODS: In this study, the presence or absence of t(14;18) translocation was determined in tumor biopsy specimens and peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) for 48 NHL patients with chronic HCV infection. RESULTS: In tumor biopsy specimens from 32 HCV-positive NHL patients, bcl-2/IgH translocation was detected in 1 of 13 patients with MC syndrome (7.7%) and 3 of 19 patients without MC syndrome (15.8%). In PBMCs from 23 HCV-positive NHL patients, this translocation was observed in 3 of 6 patients with MC syndrome (50%) and 4 of 17 patients without MC syndrome (23.5%). Interestingly, bcl-2/IgH translocation was found in 2 extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma tissues from HCV-infected patients. CONCLUSIONS: However, additional studies are required to better clarify the relationship between this translocation and extranodal marginal zone B-cell lymphoma development. Although the frequency of bcl-2/IgH translocation in PBMCs from patients with chronic HCV infection is higher than that of other NHL patients, this increased translocation rate remains to be elucidated.