What triggers mycosis fungoides?

The exact cause of mycosis fungoides is not known. Current theories include antigen persistence, retroviruses (e.g., HTLV-1, etc.), and exposure to cancer-causing (carcinogenic) substances.

What causes mycosis fungoides to flare up?

Mycosis fungoides occurs when T-cell lymphocytes become cancerous. When these cancerous lymphocytes circulate in the blood, they are called Sézary cells. Sézary syndrome occurs when you have large numbers of T-cell lymphocytes — called Sezary cells — in the blood that can go to the skin and lymph nodes.

Do mycosis fungoides come and go?

Classic mycosis fungoides

They can disappear spontaneously, stay the same size or slowly enlarge. They are most common on the chest, back or buttocks but can occur anywhere. They are often mistaken for more common skin conditions, such as eczema or psoriasis, sometimes for many years.

Who is at risk for mycosis fungoides?

Age: Mycosis fungoides occurs most often in patients older than age 60, however can be seen at any age. Sex: Mycosis fungoides is twice as common in men as women. Race: Mycosis fungoides is somewhat more common in blacks.

Is mycosis fungoides caused by a fungal infection?

Mycosis fungoides is a rare kind of skin cancer called cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL). Also called granuloma fungoides, this skin disease may look like a fungal rash but is not caused by a fungus. Mycosis fungoides is a chronic condition that can slowly worsen over time.

Mycosis Fungoides and Sèzary Syndrome

Does mycosis make you tired?

The majority of respondents had mycosis fungoides (89%). Respondents were bothered by skin redness (94%) and by the extent of symptoms that affected their choice of clothing (63%). For most patients, the disease had a functional impact, rendering them tired or affecting their sleep.

Does mycosis fungoides show up in blood test?

A sign of mycosis fungoides is a red rash on the skin. In Sézary syndrome, cancerous T-cells are found in the blood. Tests that examine the skin and blood are used to diagnose mycosis fungoides and Sézary syndrome.

How fast does mycosis fungoides progress?

Consequently, the overall average disease duration in progressing patients is 12.4 years. Blast transformation occurs in 85% of all cases in the tumor stage. Conclusions: The course of progressing MF is chronic and advancing. The progression is initially slow and later accelerates.

What is the life expectancy of someone with mycosis fungoides?

The overall survival and disease-specific survivals of our 525 patients with MF are shown in Figure 1. The median survival was 11.4 years, and the actuarial overall survival rates at 5, 10, and 30 years were 68%, 53%, and 17%, respectively. The median follow-up time was 5.5 years (range, 0.1-38.5 years).

How do I know if I have mycosis fungoides?

A sign of mycosis fungoides is a red rash on the skin.

It is hard to diagnose the rash as mycosis fungoides during this phase. Patch phase: Thin, reddened, eczema-like rash. Plaque phase: Small raised bumps (papules) or hardened lesions on the skin, which may be reddened. Tumor phase: Tumors form on the skin.

Is sun good for mycosis fungoides?

According to study data published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, environmental exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light may reduce the risk for mycosis fungoides.

Does mycosis fungoides always itch?

Signs & Symptoms. STAGE I: The first sign of mycosis fungoides is usually generalized itching (pruritus), and pain in the affected area of the skin. Sleeplessness (insomnia) may also occur. Red (erythematous) patches scattered over the skin of the trunk and the extremities appear.

What doctor treats mycosis fungoides?

Christiane Querfeld is a Dermatologist in Duarte, California. Dr. Querfeld has been practicing medicine for over 28 years and is rated as an Elite doctor by MediFind in the treatment of Mycosis Fungoides.

How often does mycosis fungoides progress?

Consistently, the results of this and other recent studies^10,12,13 indicate that the risk of disease progression within the first 10 years after diagnosis is about 5% to 10% for patients with stage Ia and between 17% and 39% for patients with stage Ib disease.

Can mycosis fungoides be misdiagnosed?

According to Dr. Harvey, mycosis fungoides is difficult to diagnose—both clinically and under a microscope—so it often goes misdiagnosed for years. It can take multiple biopsies for the cancer to show up in a sample, which explains why the cancer wasn't confirmed in the biopsy my second dermatologist did.

Where do you itch with lymphoma?

Cytokines can irritate nerve endings in the skin, which can in turn cause persistent itching. Many individuals experience this itchiness in their hands, lower legs or feet, while others feel it throughout their entire body. Patients often report that the itching tends to worsen while they are lying in bed at night.

Can you live a normal life with mycosis fungoides?

Patients with stage IA-disease have an excellent prognosis with an overall long-term life expectancy that is similar to an age-, sex-, and race-matched control population. Almost all patients with stage IA MF will die from causes other than MF, with a median survival >33 years.

Can you survive mycosis fungoides?

Mycosis fungoides is an indolent cutaneous T-cell lymphoma. Long term survival is common among patients in the early stages, but deaths from this disorder regrettably remain common among those with more advanced disease.

Is mycosis fungoides a stage?

Mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sezary syndrome (SS) stages range from I (1) through IV (4). As a rule, the lower the number, the less the cancer has spread. A higher number, such as stage IV, means cancer has spread more. And within a stage, an earlier letter means a lower stage.

Is mycosis fungoides a type of leukemia?

Description. Mycosis fungoides is the most common form of a type of blood cancer called cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.

What is cutaneous T-cell lymphoma caused by?

The exact cause of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma isn't known. In general, cancer begins when cells develop changes (mutations) in their DNA. A cell's DNA contains instructions that tell a cell what to do. The DNA mutations tell the cells to grow and multiply rapidly, creating many abnormal cells.

Is mycosis contagious?

It is not an infection and cannot be passed from person to person. HOW COMMON IS MYCOSIS FUNGOIDES? As a group, CTCL is a rare family of diseases.

Will a skin biopsy show mycosis fungoides?

Mycosis fungoides is characterized by evolution of skin patches, plaques, and tumors, which often prompt a skin biopsy.

Does mycosis fungoides cause swollen lymph nodes?

In addition to a persistent rash, symptoms of mycosis fungoides include severe itching, swollen lymph nodes, frequent fevers, chills, and sweating. This condition, for which there are no associated risk factors, is often slow to progress.

How long can you live with T-cell lymphoma?

Among all histological type subgroups, the prognosis of NK/T-cell lymphoma was the worst with the 3-year survival rate of only 25%u the 3-year survival rate was 40% in unspecified peripheral T-cell lymphoma group,and 85% in angioimmunoblast T-cell lymphoma group.