Castleman’s disease is a very rare disorder that is often misdiagnosed. Patients with this disease have noncancerous growths that can develop in the lymph node tissue throughout the body. The growths are most often in the chest, stomach and neck.
UAMS is one of the country’s leading referral centers for Castleman’s disease, and we provide treatment for this condition
in our Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy. Dr. Frits van Rhee, the director of clinical research for our Myeloma Institute, is one of the top experts in the U.S. on this disorder.
Castleman’s disease is often classified as unicentric or multicentric. Unicentric, or localized, involves tissue growth at a single lymph node. Unicentric usually causes few or no symptoms other than those associated with the enlargement of the lymph node. Most of these cases can be treated with the removal of the lymph node.
Multicentric Castleman’s disease involves growths at multiple sites. This form sometimes can appear in patients with HIV (AIDS). This form is much more serious and weakens the immune system. Symptoms include:
- High fever
- Anemia
- Weight loss
- Loss of appetite
- Low white blood cells counts
Castleman’s disease can also be defined as hyaline vascular or plasma cell type. This is based on the appearance of the lymph node tissue. A combination of both types may occur, but this is not common. Hyaline vascular has a tendency to be localized, while the plasma cell type is usually multicentric.
No matter the type of Castleman’s disease, UAMS offers hope for patients suffering from this disease. Please contact us to learn more about our treatment for Castleman’s disease.
Learn more about the UAMS Myeloma Institute for Research and Therapy.
