Mantle cell lymphoma

Mantle cell lymphoma ( MCL sometimes abbreviated by the English term mantle cell lymphoma ) is a malignant lymphoma and one of the B- cell non -Hodgkin's lymphoma. The MCL is a rare disease that predominantly occurs in middle to older age ( the average age at diagnosis is 60 years ). Men are affected more often than women. Typically, the disease is associated with lymph node swelling, since the affected B cells accumulate in the lymph nodes. Often the bone marrow of the disease is affected and at a higher grade of the same infiltration by MCL lymphoma cells also be found in the blood. Also, the digestive tract ( gastrointestinal tract ) is often affected by the disease (eg infiltration of the stomach or intestinal wall).

Mantle cell lymphoma is characterized by a reciprocal translocation between chromosomes 11 and 14, thereby Cyclin D1 expression is increased. This results in the initiation of the cell cycle and thus increased cell proliferation.

Mantle cell lymphoma has its name from the characteristic appearance ( cytomorphology ) of the lymphoma cells, which look similar to the (healthy) cells, which are normally found in the mantle zone of the lymph nodes. The older term centrocytic lymphoma is virtually congruent with the MCL.

The prognosis of the disease is unfavorable. Mantle cell lymphoma has the worst prognosis of NHL. It is most often diagnosed at an advanced stage. Prospect of complete cure is not usually, only in rare very early stages. In the treatment of combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy may also occur ( for localized problems such as crowding problem by severe swelling of lymph nodes ) are used. The bone marrow or stem cell transplantation are only used in a minority of cases as a treatment option in question, and provides the possibility of complete cure dar.

The prognosis of the disease has, however, improved significantly in recent years through intensive therapies in particular based on the widespread use of monoclonal antibodies, high - dose cytarabine and autologous or allogeneic stem cell dose reduced. A promising, novel targeted drug is Ibrutinib that has been approved since November 13, 2013 by the FDA for the treatment of mantle cell lymphoma in the United States.