The cytological diagnosis of extra-oral plasmablastic lymphoma: a rare entity

Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas (NHLs) which are associated with the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) are heterogeneous. Plasmablastic Lymphoma (PBL) was first recognized as an aggressive, invariably fatal subtype of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma which occurred mostly in patients with AIDS, with distinct histomorphologic and immunophenotypic findings, which affected the jaw and the oral mucosa exclusively. Subsequently, there have been case reports which have described extra-oral plasmablastic lymphomas in the lung, jejunum, caecum, nasal mucosa, etc. We are reporting a case of this rare subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma which presented as a soft tissue mass, which we believe is the first case to be diagnosed by FNAC.