Synchronously diagnosed eosinophilic granuloma and Hodgkin's disease in a 12-year-old boy: a case report

A case of Langerhans' cell histiocytosis associated with Hodgkin's lymphoma: Fine-needle aspiration cytologic and histopathological features

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) can be associated with a variety of malignant neoplasms, the most common being malignant lymphoma, especially Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL). In this report, we describe the fine needle aspiration (FNA) cytologic features of a case with concurrent LCH and HL in a lymph node. A 20-year-old man presented with an enlarged left upper cervical lymph node. FNA smears from the swelling revealed numerous CD1a+ and S-100+ Langerhans-type cells (LCs) along with many eosinophils, neutrophils, and lymphocytes; there were also large atypical cells with enlarged nuclei having prominent nucleoli. The cytodiagnosis was LCH and the possibility of association with or trans-differentiation into a lymphoma was suggested. The histopathological diagnosis of the excised left cervical lymph node was classical HL-nodular sclerosis type (CHL-NS) with LCH. The lacunar type Reed-Sternberg (RS) cells were positive for CD30 and CD15, and the LCs were positive for CD1a and S-100 protein. PET/CT imaging demonstrated hypermetabolic lymph nodes in neck, abdomen, thorax and pelvis as well as pulmonary nodules and a splenic mass. The patient received 13 courses of chemotherapy and two years later, the enhanced CT revealed regressive course of the disease.

Neurosurgical interventions for patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma: a single institution experience

Background

Nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is a frequent head and neck cancer in southern China and Southeast Asia. The majority of NPC patients are managed by radiation oncologists, medical oncologists and head and neck surgeons. Actually, neurosurgical interventions are warranted under specific circumstances. In this article, we described our experience as neurosurgeons in the management of NPC patients.

Methods

Medical records of NPC patients who received neurosurgical procedure at Sun Yat-sen University Cancer Center were reviewed.

Results

Twenty-seven patients were identified. Among 27 cases, neurosurgical procedures were performed in 18 (66.7%) with radiation-induced temporal necrosis, 2 (7.4%) with radiation-induced sarcoma, 4 (14.8%) with synchronous NPC with primary brain tumors, 2 (7.4%) with recurrent NPC involving skull base, and 1 (3.7%) with metachronous skull eosinophilic granuloma, respectively. The diagnosis is challenging in specific cases and initial misdiagnoses were found in 6 (22.2%) patients.

Conclusions

For NPC patients with intracranial or skull lesions, the initial diagnosis can be occasionally difficult because of the presence or a history of NPC and related treatment. Unawareness of these entities can result in misdiagnosis and subsequent improper treatment. Neurosurgical interventions are necessary for the diagnosis and treatment for these patients.