Cutaneous lymphomas are malignancies affecting lymphocytes that primarily involve the skin, and can be classified as either cutaneous B-cell or T-cell lymphoma. Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) is more common, with mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome being the most prevalent subtypes. Cutaneous B-cell lymphoma (CBCL) accounts for 20-25% of cutaneous lymphomas and can be divided into three subtypes: primary cutaneous follicular lymphoma, primary cutaneous marginal zone (MALT) lymphoma and primary cutaneous diffuse large B-cell (DLBCL) lymphoma. Whilst most cutaneous lymphomas are indolent in the early stages, they are often diagnosed at later stages as they have similar symptoms to other inflammatory skin disorders.
During early and localized stages, cutaneous lymphomas are generally treated with skin-directed therapies such as surgery, radiotherapy, and topical steroids, with systemic therapies used for patients in advanced stages or with refractory disease. For systemic treatment, the chemotherapeutic agents gemcitabine and pralatrexate have been introduced, and recently novel targeted therapies have been developed which include histone deacetylase inhibitors, mogamulizumab, brentuximab vedotin and denileukin diftitox. Novel skin-directed therapies, such as the new radiotherapy approach helical tomotherapy, are also being investigated. For young patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is still considered to be the only curative treatment.
The indolent nature of early-stage CTCL means that only late-stage patients are typically treated with systemic therapies. For patients with CTCL there is a risk of sudden progression to advanced stages including extracutaneous site involvement, and as such, research enabling the development and improvement of tools for predicting progression in CTCL patients is key in optimizing patient selection for more intensive treatment, and subsequently improved disease control.
CTCLs present with significant clinical variability and transcriptional heterogeneity. As such, several studies have attempted to elucidate the pathogenesis of CTCL. The role of the skin microenvironment in progression has also garnered a lot of attention, with some studies indicating that microbes such as Staphylococcus aureus can impact disease progression. Following on from this, it has been suggested that treatments which modulate the skin microbiome may enable the maintenance of stable disease. Key research areas in CBCL include characterizing the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying lymphoproliferation and the identification of novel markers which could be leveraged for classification and diagnostic-therapeutic perspectives.
This collection will accept Review of Mini-Review articles advancing our understanding of the etiology, pathogenesis, and optimal treatment and management of cutaneous lymphomas.
Important Note: Manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.
Cutaneous lymphomas are malignancies affecting lymphocytes that primarily involve the skin, and can be classified as either cutaneous B-cell or T-cell lymphoma. Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) is more common, with mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome being the most prevalent subtypes. Cutaneous B-cell lymphoma (CBCL) accounts for 20-25% of cutaneous lymphomas and can be divided into three subtypes: primary cutaneous follicular lymphoma, primary cutaneous marginal zone (MALT) lymphoma and primary cutaneous diffuse large B-cell (DLBCL) lymphoma. Whilst most cutaneous lymphomas are indolent in the early stages, they are often diagnosed at later stages as they have similar symptoms to other inflammatory skin disorders.
During early and localized stages, cutaneous lymphomas are generally treated with skin-directed therapies such as surgery, radiotherapy, and topical steroids, with systemic therapies used for patients in advanced stages or with refractory disease. For systemic treatment, the chemotherapeutic agents gemcitabine and pralatrexate have been introduced, and recently novel targeted therapies have been developed which include histone deacetylase inhibitors, mogamulizumab, brentuximab vedotin and denileukin diftitox. Novel skin-directed therapies, such as the new radiotherapy approach helical tomotherapy, are also being investigated. For young patients with cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL), allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is still considered to be the only curative treatment.
The indolent nature of early-stage CTCL means that only late-stage patients are typically treated with systemic therapies. For patients with CTCL there is a risk of sudden progression to advanced stages including extracutaneous site involvement, and as such, research enabling the development and improvement of tools for predicting progression in CTCL patients is key in optimizing patient selection for more intensive treatment, and subsequently improved disease control.
CTCLs present with significant clinical variability and transcriptional heterogeneity. As such, several studies have attempted to elucidate the pathogenesis of CTCL. The role of the skin microenvironment in progression has also garnered a lot of attention, with some studies indicating that microbes such as Staphylococcus aureus can impact disease progression. Following on from this, it has been suggested that treatments which modulate the skin microbiome may enable the maintenance of stable disease. Key research areas in CBCL include characterizing the genetic and epigenetic mechanisms underlying lymphoproliferation and the identification of novel markers which could be leveraged for classification and diagnostic-therapeutic perspectives.
This collection will accept Review of Mini-Review articles advancing our understanding of the etiology, pathogenesis, and optimal treatment and management of cutaneous lymphomas.
Important Note: Manuscripts consisting solely of bioinformatics, computational analysis, or predictions of public databases which are not accompanied by validation (independent cohort or biological validation in vitro or in vivo) will not be accepted in any of the sections of Frontiers in Oncology.