Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma masquerading as splenic abscess: A case report

• Published in: Annals of medicine and surgery 2022-09, Vol.81, Article 104449
• Main Authors: Khan, Qaisar Ali, Mumtaz, Arif, Baqi, Abdul, Ain, Hoor Ul, Mahfooz, Rabia Salman, Asim, Nowshad, Iram, Sumaira, Hussien Mohamed Ahmed, Khabab Abbasher, Tahir, Muhammad Junaid, Yousaf, Zohaib
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Case Report; Chemotherapy; Computed tomography; Extranodal; Lymphocytes; Malignancy; Spleen
• ISSN: 2049-0801; 2049-0801
• DOI: 10.1016/j.amsu.2022.104449

Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) is a monoclonal proliferation of lymphoid cells from B lineage. Although NHLs are primarily hematological tumors of lymph nodes but rarely can involve extranodal sites such as the spleen. A 29-year-old female patient presented with low-grade fever, cough, anemia, weight loss, tender left hypochondrium, and splenomegaly. A hypodense lesion in the spleen with central necrosis, having strong positivity for common leukocyte antigen (LCA), CD 20, and CD 10, led to a diffuse large B cell lymphoma diagnosis. The patient had an excellent clinical post-splenectomy response to combination chemotherapy and immunotherapy. NHL can present with symptomatic extra-nodal involvement without enlarged lymph nodes. •Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) is a group of malignant lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD) that primarily involve the lymph nodes.•NHL is characterized by an irregular proliferation of T or B lymphocytes. Most NHLs are of B-cell origin.•NHLs range from indolent malignancies (low-grade histology) to rapidly growing, highly aggressive tumors (high-grade histology).•Extra-nodal involvement is common in the spleen, with prevalence being 20%–30%.•Here we described a 29-year-old female patient presented with low-grade fever, cough, anemia, weight loss, tender left hypochondrium, and splenomegaly.