[Circulating lymphocyte populations and B-cell differentiation in a young female patient with multicentric giant lymph node hyperplasia].

Giant multicentric hyperplasia of the lymph nodes (GMHLN) is currently regarded as a disseminated form of angiofollicular lymphoid hyperplasia, or Castleman's disease. An immunologic study was carried out on a 24 year-old Caucasian woman who was admitted to hospital with generalised lymph node enlargement, jaundice and fever, and showed an excellent response to steroid therapy. No alterations were found in the lymphocytic subsets, the intrinsic B cell function or the T-B cooperative capability. These data disagree with the hypothesis than GMHLN is due to a deficiency of the T cell suppressive function with concomitant immunoglobulin over-production.