Introduction: Anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies have been successfully used in patients affected with B-cell lymphomas - mostly of the centrofollicular variety - showing relapse after treatment with antineoplastic chemotherapy. We report herein two patients with cutaneous B-cell lymphomas showing complete remission after treatment with rituximab.
Case reports: A 70 year-old man with a cutaneous large cell lymphoma of the legs relapsing despite chemotherapy, and a 38 year-old woman with a cutaneous and lymph node centrofollicular lymphoma were treated with rituximab 375 mg/m(2) weekly for 4 weeks, leading to complete remission, persisting 15 months after the end of treatment in one case, while remission lasted 10 months in the first case. In this latter case, relapsing lesions responded following treatment with a rituximab/cytotoxic polychemotherapy combination.
Discussion: Rituximab is a monoclonal chimeric antibody targeting CD20, a surface antigen which is expressed by cells belonging to the B-lymphocytic lineage and by most B cell malignancies. Sixteen other patients with cutaneous B-cell lymphomas treated with rituximab have been previously reported in the literature, with a complete remission rate of 25 p. 100 and a partial remission rate of 56 p. 100. The presently reported cases support the use of rituximab in cases of cutaneous B-cell lymphoma showing resistance or relapse after antineoplastic chemotherapy, either alone or in combination with cytotoxic drugs.