The clinical relevance of t(14; 18)/BCL-2 rearrangement and DEL 6q in diffuse large cell lymphoma and immunoblastic lymphoma

Background: t(14; 18)/bcl-2 gene rearrangement (R) is claimedto impart a worse rate of complete remission and disease-freesurvival in diffuse large cell lymphoma (DLCL). DEL 6q has alsobeen associated with poor outcome. Design: Retrospective studyof 54 patients with either diffuse large cell or immunoblasticlymphoma who had cytogenetics and/or molecular studies performed.Results: Patient characteristics, complete remission rate, andtime to treatment failure (TTF) were similar at three year follow-upfor groups with and without t(14; 18)/BCL-2R Survival was worsefor the former but the difference was not statistically significant.For DEL 6q, patient characteristics and survival rates weresimilar at three year follow-up for patients with and withoutthe abnormality. TTF was worse for the former but this was notstatistically significant. Conclusion: This study, with equalor greater number of patients with t(14; 18) than previous reports,fails to show a worse prognosis for patients with the t(14;18) chromosomal abnormality. A definite association will awaitfurther accrual of patients and a meaningul multivariate analysis. lymphoma, BCL-2, cytogenetics, DEL 6q