Changing pattern of residual tumor in Burkitt lymphoma: findings at autopsy

Autopsies were performed on 47 patients who died of Burkitt lymphoma in Uganda between 1967 and 1971. The patients were separated into four groups based on the duration of survival from the time of diagnosis. Twenty patients survived less than three weeks; all had massive tumors. Six patients died between 10 and 16 weeks after diagnosis, usually from side effects of drug therapy. Of 16 patients who died between 24 and 52 weeks after diagnosis, 13 showed involvement of the central nervous system. Five patients died one year or more after diagnosis; two had a late relapse following a disease-free interval of one and four years, respectively; the other three had survived with clinically apparent tumor that was not responsive to therapy. In recent years, there has been a steady reduction in the proportion of patients showing residual systemic involvement at autopsy. This reduction is balanced by an increase in the proportion of patients with lesions of the central nervous system.