Nasal-type NK/T cell lymphoma (NK/TCL) is an increasingly recognized disease entity of aggressive clinical behavior. The objective of this study was to investigate the correlation between the clinical features of NK/TCL and patient prognosis. Immunohistochemical detection of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-associated latent membrane protein (LMP)-1, Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 protein expression, as well as TUNEL staining, were performed. Of the 58 cases studied, 47 (81%) displayed positive expression of LMP-1 protein, which was associated with the presence of B symptoms and patient prognosis. In addition, high expression of Cyclin D1 and Bcl-2 protein was observed to correlate with poor prognosis and decreased survival. More importantly, LMP-1 and Cyclin D1 appeared to be co-expressed. This, along with other parameters such as clinical stage at diagnosis and enlarged lymph nodes, could be used as an independent prognostic factor for clinical outcome, as the survival rate of NK/TCL patients was closely associated with LMP-1/Cyclin D1 co-expression, advanced clinical stage and lymph node infiltration.

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