C82.41

Billable

Follicular lymphoma grade IIIb, lymph nodes of head, face, and neck

HCC Category Mapping

V28HCC 21 — Breast, Prostate, Colorectal and Other Cancers and Tumors

0.545

V24HCC 10 — Lymphoma and Other Cancers

0.675

ESRDHCC 10 — Lymphoma and Other Cancers

0.000

RxHCCHCC 21 — Hodgkin Lymphoma and Other Cancers

0.000

What This Code Means

A type of cancer of the lymph system (follicular lymphoma) that is grade IIIb and located in the lymph nodes of the head, face, and neck area.

Coding Tips

•Verify that lymph node involvement is specifically in the head, face, or neck region as documented
•Grade IIIb represents a more aggressive form of follicular lymphoma compared to grade IIIa

Clinical Significance

Follicular lymphoma grade IIIb of head, face, and neck lymph nodes represents the most aggressive follicular subtype in a clinically accessible location. Grade IIIb behaves like diffuse large B-cell lymphoma and is treated with curative-intent chemoimmunotherapy. Head/neck presentation allows for early detection and accessible rebiopsy if transformation is suspected.

Documentation Requirements

✓Pathology confirming grade IIIb pattern (centroblast sheets without centrocytes)
✓Expert hematopathology distinction from DLBCL documented
✓Specific head, face, or neck lymph nodes involved
✓Ann Arbor staging with performance status assessment
✓Curative-intent treatment plan (R-CHOP or equivalent)

Commonly Confused Codes

C82.31 — Grade IIIa, head/face/neck; IIIa retains centrocytes, IIIb does not C82.21 — Grade III unspecified, head/face/neck; use C82.41 when IIIb is confirmed C83.31 — DLBCL, head/face/neck; very similar histologically, requires expert pathology C82.11 — Grade II, head/face/neck; much lower grade

Code Hierarchy

└C82Follicular lymphoma └C82.4Follicular lymphoma grade IIIb └C82.41Follicular lymphoma grade IIIb, lymph nodes of head, face, and neck

└C82.41Follicular lymphoma grade IIIb, lymph nodes of head, face, and neck