A 62-year-old man has slowly enlarging, scaly, erythematous cutaneous patches over the trunk for three years. Skin biopsy shows atypical small lymphocytes with convoluted nuclei infiltrating the epidermis singly and as compact collections within the spongiotic epithelium. What is this histological finding called?

• A Pautrier microabscesses ✓
• B Munro microabscesses
• C Dutcher bodies
• D Grenz zone infiltration

Explanation

Mycosis fungoides is a cutaneous T-cell lymphoma in which neoplastic CD4-positive T cells home to the skin and form Pautrier microabscesses, compact clusters of atypical cerebriform lymphocytes within the epidermis. Munro microabscesses are collections of neutrophils in the stratum corneum of psoriasis, Dutcher bodies are intranuclear pseudoinclusions of plasma cells, and a Grenz zone describes subepidermal sparing in lepromatous leprosy and some dermal tumors.

Reference: Robbins and Cotran Pathologic Basis of Disease, 10th ed.

High-yield for: NEET PGINI-CETNExTFMGEUSMLEPLABMRCP

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