Primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the liver: case report

This paper describes a rare occurrence of primary lymphoma of the liver in a young female and demonstrates the possibility of making the correct diagnosis by ultrasonically guided fine needle aspiration biopsy. A 32-year old female suffering from upper abdominal pain, hepatomegaly, nausea, anorexia and weight loss for almost 2 months was admitted to our Department. After a clinical and instrumental (lab exams, ultrasonography, computed tomography) evaluation, we reached the correct diagnosis of hepatic primary non-Hodgkin's lymphoma by means of ultrasonically guided fine needle aspiration biopsy. Two weeks after hospitalization the patient was treated with 8 cycles of CHOP chemotherapy and then with alpha-2b interferon immunotherapy. The hepatic ultrasonography and CT abdominal scan showed the complete absence of the lymphomatous lesions 36 months later. Up to February 1998, the patient was well and led a normal life. We conclude that the CHOP chemotherapy plus interferon immunotherapy were effective and well tolerated with a complete response 38 months following diagnosis.