Elizabeth A. Dunlap/Sandbox 1: Difference between revisions

Lymphoma is a blood cancer that consists of lymphocytes (specific kinds of white blood cells) growing and multiplying without restriction <ref name="one">Lymphoma Research Foundation (2012). Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma (CTCL). doi:http://www.lymphoma.org/site/pp.asp?c=bkLTKaOQLmK8E&b=6300151</ref>.  These cancerous cells are then dispatched to the lymph nodes, blood, bone marrow and spleen, among other organs<ref name="one"/>.  The accumulation of these cells forms a tumor.  One type of lymphocyte that can develop into a cancerous cell is T-lymphocytes (T-cells)<ref name="one"/>.  An extremely prevalent type of T-cell lymphoma is cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) which involves T-cell lymphomas that inflict damage on the skin<ref name="one"/>.  CTCL is a non-Hodgkin type of lymphoma that can also have negative impacts on the lymph nodes, blood, spleen, and other organs <ref name="two">Pinter-Brown, L. C. & Schwartz, R. A. (2016). Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma. Medscape. doi:http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/2139720-overview </ref>.  Patients often have dry skin accompanied with a rash and itching, as well as swollen lymph nodes<ref name="one"/>.  Patches, plaques, or tumors on the skin are characteristic of mycosis fungoides which is a mild type of CTCL<ref name="one"/>.  The majority of the time these symptoms are the only ones present, however, ten percent of patients that have later stages of the disease can develop severe complications<ref name="one"/>.  Sezary syndrome is a progressed form of mycosis fungoides that is identified by lymphoma cells appearing in the blood<ref name="one"/>.  This syndrome is systemic and chronic and has much more invasive symptoms such as red, itchy rashes covering over eighty percent of a patient’s body<ref name="one"/>.  Patients with this syndrome may also have patches and tumors on the skin, as well as alterations in hair, eyelids, nails, and enlargement of their lymph nodes<ref name="one"/>.  Zolinza is used to treat cutaneous manifestations that arise with CTCL, and this treatment is only recommended for patients that have undergone at least two systematic therapies with no improvement in their condition <ref>https://www.merck.com/product/usa/pi_circulars/z/zolinza/zolinza_pi.pdf </ref>.