Primary hepatic high-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and chronic hepatitis C infection

Little is known about the coincidence of hepatitis C virus infection (HCV) and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, although there is an increased incidence of chronic HCV infection with cryoglobulinemia type II and, interestingly, low-grade non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) in a few patients. We therefore report on a 74-year-old white male with known chronic hepatitis C virus infection who was admitted to the clinic due to weight loss and pain in the right upper quadrant. Ultrasound examination was performed for suspected hepatocellular carcinoma since a lesion in the left lobe of the liver was seen. X-ray of the lungs showed a few scattered lesions, suggestive of metastases. The ultrasound-guided fine-needle puncture revealed a high-grade malignant B-cell NHL While alpha-fetoprotein was normal, both cryoglobulin type II and the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for HCV were positive. After six cycles of chemotherapy consisting of CHOP, the patient showed complete remission over three years. Ultimately, he died due to a sudden myeloic blast crisis. In summary, we discuss the possible etiopathologic role of the hepatitis viruses in the occurrence of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. As we and others showed that HCV infects peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PBML), the infected PBML not only may be a source for reinfection after orthotopic liver transplantation, but also could be the cause for transformation and monoclonal propagation of lymphomatous tissue.