[Non-Hodgkin lymphoma with gastrointestinal manifestations]

The gastrointestinal tract is one of the most frequent places of manifestation of an extranodal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. We have collected the dates of 27 patients--14 men and 13 women--with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the gastrointestinal tract. The age of the patients varied widely, the 7th decade being the most represented one. The stomach was the most frequent place of manifestation. In 2 cases the lymphoma spread over the whole gastrointestinal tract. At the time of diagnosis 12 patients had already reached stage IV. The histologic examination according to the Kiel-classification showed 11 lymphomas of low malignancy and 6 lymphomas of high malignancy. The prognosis was essentially determined by the stage, less by the histologic type of the lymphoma. Finally the possibilities of therapy are discussed.