Background. Morphology and immunological marker analysis are insufficient to detect neoplastic population in
some cases (15%) of non-Hodgkin´s lymphomas (B-NHL). Aim of the study was to detect malignancy at molecular
level using polymerase chain reaction.
Methods and Results. We examined a diverse set of B-NHL (90 patients - 48 men, range 18 - 76 years, mean age
53 years and 42 women, range 20 - 86 years, mean age 54 years) to detect immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH)
rearrangement. 32 patients with centroblastic-centrocytic lymphomas (12 men, range 45 - 64 years, mean age 52
years and 20 women, range 29 - 85 years, mean age 53 years) were also studied for translocation (14,18). DNA was
isolated from lymphatic nodes, bone marrows and peripheral blood. Translocation (14,18) was founded in 38 %
lymphatic nodes, 36 % bone marrows and in 50 % of peripheral blood. The detection rate of IgH PCR varried
according to the morphologic type of the analyzed lymphoma specimen. A high detection rate (100%) was observed
in low-grade lymphoma, while in high-grade lymphoma was in 62 %. In bone marrows samples from follicular
lymphomas, IgH PCR positivity was observed in 50 % cases without leukaemic blood picture and in 64 % cases
with lymphoma cells in peripheral blood picture. In peripheral blood with bone marrow infiltration, but without the
presence of lymphoma cells (morphological assessment) we observed 71 % IgH PCR positive samples. In case,
when bone marrow and peripheral blood were morphologic negative, we identified 64 % positive cases. Using
t(14,18) and IgH PCR we detected neoplastic population in 81 % follicular lymphomas.
Conclusions. IgH PCR and t(14,18) PCR are convenient additional technology for detection of neoplastic
lymphocytes in B-NHL, particularly when morphology and immunological marker analysis are insufficient.

        Key words: polymerase chain reaction, rearrangement, translocation (14,18), B-non Hodgkin´s lymphoma, neoplastic population.