ROME
The identification of better biomarkers for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in Sjögren's syndrome patients is crucial, given the increased risk of the disease among individuals with Sjögren's, said Dr. Elke Theander of Malmö (Sweden) University Hospital.
Dr. Theander and colleagues reviewed salivary gland biopsies from 175 adults who were enrolled in a long-term Sjögren's syndrome registry.
Inflammation of the salivary glands (focal sialadenitis) was found in 136 biopsies, and germinal center structures were detected in 43 (32%) of these biopsies.
Of the seven patients who developed NHL, six had had germinal center–like structures.
The positive predictive value of germinal centers was 16%, but the negative predictive value was 99%.
The results suggest that clinicians can reassure patients whose biopsies lack germinal center structures that their NHL risk is low, Dr. Theander said.
The time between salivary gland biopsy and a diagnosis of NHL ranged from 2 years 4 months to 12 years 7 months, with a median of 8 years.
The mean age of the patients at baseline was 37 years, and the mean age at the time of lymphoma diagnosis was 46 years, the investigators reported.
The study was limited by its small size, but data collection is ongoing, and more patients are being added to help the researchers identify which factors are the most important in predicting NHL risk, Dr. Theander noted.
Overall, germinal center positivity was significantly correlated with high-risk Sjögren's syndrome (defined by the presence of at least one of the following: parotid swelling, skin vasculitis, hypocomplementemia, and CD4-positive lymphopenia). Germinal center positivity als
Germinal center positivity also was significantly associated with lymphadenopathy, systemic disease, and autoantibodies to Sjögren's syndrome antibodies A and B, Dr. Theander said.
http://www.rheumatologynews.com/article/S1541-9800(10)70397-5/fulltext
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