Non-scarring patchy alopecia: What else, apart from alopecia areata?

J Cutan Pathol. 2021 Oct;48(10):1282-1285. doi: 10.1111/cup.14068. Epub 2021 Jun 10.

Abstract

A 67-year-old woman presented with a 3-month history of patchy alopecia areata (AA)-like hair loss and multiple painful enlarged lymph nodes at cervical, nuchal, and left axillary site. The patient was on follow-up for IgM monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance, stable for many years. A punch biopsy from a patch of the temporal scalp revealed the presence of B-cell lymphoid infiltrates consistent with marginal zone B-cell lymphoma (MZL). Other staging examinations were conducted to make a definitive diagnosis of nodal MZL with secondary cutaneous involvement. The patient showed a complete remission of the alopecia, without evidence of scarring, after immunochemotherapy for lymphoma.

Keywords: alopecia areata; marginal zone lymphoma; non-scarring alopecia; patchy alopecia; systemic lymphoma.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Alopecia Areata / etiology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Lymphoma, B-Cell, Marginal Zone / complications*

Supplementary concepts

  • Diffuse alopecia