Effectiveness of UVB Phototherapy on Mycosis Fungoides using histologic Guitart Criteria in Iranian Patients

Background: Mycosis Fungoides (MF) is the most common primary cutaneous lymphoma.Mycosis Fungoides often develops slowly over many years, presenting with a generalizederythroderma, skin patches or plaques. The diagnosis of MF requires the integration ofclinical and histopathologic findings. Narrowband UVB (NBUVB) is widely used to treatMF. To evaluate the effectiveness of therapy the histopathologic findings before and afterNBUVB reviewed using GUITART criteria.Method: We enrolled 20 patients (12 women, 8 men; age range, 10-80 years; mean age, 45.5years) with clinically and histologically proven MF. The patients received NBUVBphototherapy three times a week. A biopsy was performed 3 months after onset of thetreatment and GUITART criteria used to scoring MF before and after therapy.Results: Phototherapy was reduced the primary intraepidermal atypical lymphocytes (Pvalue=0.008), dermal atypical lymphocytes (P value=0.008), epidermotropism (Pvalue=0.001), density of infiltration (P Value=0.002) and lymphocytic infiltrate withoutinflammatory features (P Value=0.046) in all patient. But the relationship between thereticular fibroplasia of papillary dermis and phototherapy was not proved (P value=0.18).Overall score of patients was significantly lower after phototherapy (P value=0.000).Conclusion: Our data suggest that NBUVB therapy is reduces histiologic score of MF and iseffective for the treatment of Iranian patients.