Evaluation of BCL6 and MUM1 expression in patients with diffuse large B cell lymphoma and their correlations with staging and prognosis in Iran

Abstract

Background: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common form of non-Hodgkins lymphoma (NHL), accounting for approximately 25% of NHL cases. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association between the BCL6 and MUM1 gene expression and patient prognosis and stage. Materials and Methods: After ethical approval, in a cross-sectional study, tissue samples of 80 patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma were analyzed for BCL6 and MUM1 gene expression. Immunohistochemical staining was performed with division into categories of 0-5%, 5-25%, 26-50%, 51-75% and more than 75%. Other clinical and histological information such as lymph node involvement, T-stage, B symptoms and patient outcome were also recorded. Data were analyzed with SPSS version 16 and a P-value less than 0.05 was considered significant. Results: The patient mean age was 46.9±10.5 years (47.6±10.7 and 46.1±9.6 for males and females, respectively). A significant association was seen between lymphoma stage and BCL6 (p=0.045) but not MUM1 expression (p=0.09). However, the latter was associated with mortality (p=0.006) as was also the BCL6 level (p=0.006). Conclusions:: Overexpression of MUM1 and BCL6 is associated with poor prognosis in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.