An unexpected finding of hepatic lymphoma after emergent cholecystectomy

Herein we describe a case report of a patient with elevated liver enzymes, leukocytosis, anemia and fevers after cholecystectomy surgery done for presumed acute cholecystitis. Numerous post-surgical tests showed no acute surgical complications to account for the laboratory abnormalities. Due to systemic symptoms of joint pain and the chronicity of the symptoms, a liver biopsy was recommended by the gastroenterology service to rule out infectious or auto-immune causes. After the liver biopsy, the patient was diagnosed with intravascular large B-cell lymphoma (IVLBCL), a subset of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. After a thorough lymphoma evaluation, the IVLBCL was found to be isolated to the liver and treated successfully with chemotherapy. This is only the second case report in the literature of this entity.