T cell receptor gene analysis is a sensitive method for assessment of peripheral blood involvement in @entity3217 fungoides. This study uses polymerase chain reaction/single-strand conformational polymorphism (PCR/SSCP) analysis of the T cell receptor gamma gene and relates the results to skin stage and outcome in @entity3217 fungoides. Seventy-five peripheral blood samples from 66 @entity1 were obtained from 1990 onwards and subjected to PCR/SSCP. Both Southern blot analysis and PCR/SSCP analysis were performed on 63 samples from 56 @entity1 . Fourteen @entity1 had T1 disease (12 IA, two IIA), 20 T2 (14 IB, five IIA, one @entity3480 ), 29 T3 (24 IIB, two @entity3480 , three IVB, two @entity1 tested at both T2 and T3), and five T4 (all III). The percentage of positive samples was higher with PCR/SSCP than with Southern blot analysis (29 of 63 vs eight of 63 samples, p < 0.001), and the percentage of positive samples increased with each stage (21% at T1, 35% at T2, 58% at T3, and 71% at T4). Proportional hazards analysis corrected for age, skin, and lymph node stage showed that the presence of a peripheral blood clone is associated with a worse outcome (p = 0.03, CI 1.1-6.03). These results indicate that the presence of a peripheral blood clone is an independent prognostic variable in @entity1 with @entity3217 fungoides after correcting for age, skin, and lymph node stage, and that peripheral blood involvement is present in a large proportion of @entity1 with early stage @entity3217 fungoides. KEYWORDS: polymerase chain reaction/single-strand conformational polymorphism/T cell receptor gene rearrangement. J Invest Dermatol 114:117-121, 2000

Detection of a peripheral blood T cell clone is an independent prognostic marker in XXXX fungoides.

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients'] @entity3217 :: ('MESH:D015821', 'Disease') :: ['mycosis'] @entity3480 :: ('MESH:C538167', 'Disease') :: ['IVA']
@entity3217 :: (MESH:D015821,Disease) :: ['mycosis']
