Background: Examine lymphatic malformation lymphoid aggregates for the expression of tertiary lymphoid organ markers. Determine how lymphoid aggregate density relates to lymphatic malformation clinical features.

Methods and Results: Retrospective cohort study. Tissue and clinical data were reviewed from 29 patients in the Vascular Anomaly Database who represented the spectrum of head and neck lymphatic malformations and had >5 years of follow-up. Archived formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded lymphatic malformation tissue was immunohistochemically stained with antibodies for tertiary lymphoid organ markers, which included follicular and mature myeloid dendritic cells, high endothelial venules, segregated B and T-cells, lymphatic endothelial cells, and lymphoid homing chemokines (CXCL13, CCL21). Lymphoid aggregate density (count/mm²) was quantified by 2 independent, blinded reviewers. Lymphoid aggregate density and lymphatic malformation clinical features were characterized using analysis of variance. Larger lymphatic malformation tissue lymphoid aggregates stained consistently for tertiary lymphoid organ markers. In oral cavity and neck specimens from the same patients (n = 9), there were more tertiary lymphoid organ in oral cavity than in neck specimens (p = 0.0235). In lymphatic malformation neck tissue, de Serres stage 4 lymphatic malformations displayed the highest tertiary lymphoid organ density. No significant association was seen between tertiary lymphoid organ density and other clinical features.

Conclusion: This study demonstrates that some lymphoid aggregates within lymphatic malformations represent tertiary lymphoid organs. There was an association between tertiary lymphoid organ density and lymphatic malformation location. Further study is required to define the role of lymphoid neogenesis and tertiary lymphoid organ formation in lymphatic malformation pathogenesis.