Unusual Presentation of a Small-Cell Variant of Anaplastic Large-Cell Lymphoma Case: When a Septic Picture Is Not Sepsis

Table 2

Comparison of classic and small-cell variant ALCL.

	Classic ALCL variant	Small-cell ALCL variant
Frequency	70% of ALCL	5%–10% of ALCL
ALK rearrangement	ALK-positive and ALK-negative	ALK-positive
Morphology	Characterized with numerous large round or pleomorphic cells with horseshoe-shaped nuclei with multiple (or single) prominent nucleoli; these cells are also called “hallmark” cells	The majorities of cells are small to medium in size and have clear cytoplasm and irregular nuclei; a minor population of “hallmark” cells can present singly or in cluster [5]
Peripheral leukemia involvement	Extremely rare	Very common [5, 6]
Bone marrow involvement	Relatively infrequent (10%–30% of cases)	Common; usually subtle bone marrow involvement with a small cluster of small lymphocytes and only rare scattered large tumor cells [5, 6]
Systemic involvement	Relatively less infrequent	Frequently associated with widespread disseminated disease [6]
Prognosis	2-year survival of 73%	2-year survival of 50% and 3-year disease-free survival of 25% [3, 5]