[Genetic alterations and lymphoma]

Malignant lymphoma is a group of heterogeneous lymphoid malignancies with different clinical, histological, and molecular features. Although this disease had been subclassified mainly according to morphology and immune phenotype, accumulating evidence has demonstrated that distinct mutations, copy number alterations, and structural variations exist among each subtype of malignant lymphoma with the advent of next-generation sequencing. Based on these observations, various genetic alterations have been described in the recent WHO classification, such as MYC and BCL2 and/or BCL6 rearrangements, defining high-grade B-cell lymphoma as a new entity. In addition, several studies have reported that genetic profiling can improve the ability to predict patient prognosis solely based on clinical factors of lymphomas. Moreover, many attempts to develop anti-cancer agents targeting genetic alterations are ongoing. Therefore, genetic alterations can be exploited to develop better diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for the treatment of lymphomas. Here, we describe the entire picture of genetic alterations in lymphomas and clarify their similarities and differences among various subtypes, specifically focusing on their significance in diagnosis, prognostication, and treatment.