Canadian Medical Guide > Diseases > Neoplasms > Neoplasms by Histologic Type > Lymphoma > Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin > Lymphoma, Diffuse Terms and Definitions

Lymphoma, Diffuse

Medical Definition:	Malignant lymphoma in which neoplastic cells diffusely infiltrate the entire lymph node without any definite organized pattern. Patients whose lymphomas present a diffuse pattern generally have a more unfavorable survival outlook than those presenting with a follicular or nodular pattern.
Guide Notes:	a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
Previously Indexed:	Lymphoma, Non-Hodgkin's (1986-1990)

Lymphoma, Diffuse Categories.

	Lymphoma, Large-Cell, Diffuse - Malignant lymphoma composed of large cells which may be both cleaved and noncleaved. The pattern is predominantly diffuse. Most of these lymphomas represent the malignant counterpart of B-lymphocytes at midstage in the process of differentiation.
	Lymphoma, Large-Cell, Immunoblastic - Malignant lymphoma characterized by the presence of immunoblasts with uniformly round-to-oval nuclei, one or more prominent nucleoli, and abundant cytoplasm. This class may be subdivided into plasmacytoid and clear-cell types based on cytoplasmic characteristics. A third category, pleomorphous, may be analogous to some of the peripheral T-cell lymphomas (LYMPHOMA, T-CELL, PERIPHERAL) recorded in both the United States and Japan.
	Lymphoma, Lymphoblastic - A high-grade malignant lymphoma composed of a diffuse, relatively uniform proliferation of cells with round or convoluted nuclei and scanty cytoplasm. The cells are cytologically similar to the lymphoblasts seen in acute lymphocytic leukemia, and in some cases, the disease may evolve into a leukemic phase morphologically indistinguishable from acute T-lymphocytic leukemia (LEUKEMIA, T-CELL, ACUTE). Lymphoblastic lymphoma represents approximately one-third of the cases of non-Hodgkin's lymphomas in children and 5% of the cases in adults. It is more prevalent in males.
	Lymphoma, Mixed-Cell, Diffuse - A heterogeneous group of intermediate-grade lymphomas of mixed cellular composition. Although they have not been extensively studied, it appears that they are predominantly B-cell diseases.
	Lymphoma, Small Cleaved-Cell, Diffuse - An intermediate-grade malignant lymphoma in which the neoplastic cells (B-lymphocytes) exhibit variability in size, configuration, and degree of differentiation. The cells are irregular in shape and have distinct nuclei.
	Lymphoma, Small Lymphocytic - A low-grade malignant lymphoma that may, in some cases, be considered histologically identical to chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL; LEUKEMIA, LYMPHOCYTIC, CHRONIC). It is diffuse in pattern, representing the neoplastic proliferation of well-differentiated B-lymphocytes. In patients with immunoglobulin gammopathies, the lymphocytes may exhibit plasmacytoid characteristics.
	Lymphoma, Small Noncleaved-Cell - A high-grade malignant lymphoma that includes both Burkitt tumor (BURKITT LYMPHOMA) and other lymphomas previously designated undifferentiated non-Burkitt type. Nuclei in Burkitt tumor are round to ovoid and uniform in size. The non-Burkitt type exhibits greater nuclear variation and less evidence of cellular maturation with a correspondingly lesser degree of differentiation.

Lymphoma, Diffuse Medical Definitions and Terms

CANADIAN MEDICAL GUIDE

Thank you for visiting Canadian Medical Guide .com

Wildlife On Video »

Canada's Great Outdoors
Tour Canadian Rockies »
Book Banff »
Book Jasper »
Maligne Lake Boat Cruise »
Gondola Banff »
Hike Jasper »
Jasper Columbia Icefield »