Malignant lymphoma arising from chronic tuberculous empyema. A case report

Primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma as a chest-wall mass: A case report

RATIONALE

Primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the chest wall is extremely rare. A majority of the pleural lymphomas develop in patients with chronic tuberculous pyothorax. The underlying mechanism might be attributed to the sustained stimulation of chronic inflammation. Surgery followed by adjuvant chemotherapy can improve the outcome in some patients with lymphoma localized only in the chest wall. Thus, an early diagnosis of pyothorax-associated lymphoma is essential as it is a malignant, life-threatening condition.

PATIENT CONCERNS

A 79-year-old male complained of left-side chest pain for more than 2 months, which was not alleviated with nitrates and aspirin. The patient presented an intermittent low fever, anorexia, and marasmus, accompanied by tuberculosis 40 years ago and chronic left-side pyothorax. Also, ANCA (antineutrophil cytoplasmic autoantibody)-associated vasculitis occurred for >3years.

DIAGNOSIS

Computed tomography scan showed a solid mass in the left lateral chest wall. The patient underwent ultrasonic-guided biopsy of the lesion. A diagnosis of primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the chest wall was established after histological examination.

INTERVENTION

Due to advanced age and poor physical condition, the patient received CHOP chemotherapy at a reduced dose.

OUTCOMES

The patient died 5 days after the first cycle of chemotherapy with severe dyspnea and high fever.

LESSONS

The chronic inflammation stimulation might result in the development of lymphoma in the chest wall of patients with long-term pyothorax, vasculitis, or other autoimmune diseases associated with malignancies. The fever, chest pain, or other nonspecific clinical symptoms in these patients should be under intensive focus as it might indicate the development of malignant lymphoma. Thus, histological examination in these patients is essential for accurate early diagnosis.

Primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the chest wall: a case report

Reports of primary diffuse large B-cell lymphomas of the chest wall are extremely rare in the literature. We report the case of a 62-year-old Chinese woman presenting with left-sided chest pain. A computed tomography scan showed a solid, round mass in the left anterior chest wall, involving the second and third costal cartilages. Complete resection and reconstruction of the chest wall was performed. The histological and immunohistochemical features of the mass were used to diagnose a primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Spectrum of Epstein-Barr virus-related diseases: a pictorial review

Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) prevails among more than 90% of the adult population worldwide. Most primary infections occur during young childhood and cause no or only nonspecific symptoms; then the virus becomes latent and resides in lymphocytes in the peripheral blood. Inactive latent EBV usually causes no serious consequences, but once it becomes active it can cause a wide spectrum of malignancies: epithelial tumors such as nasopharyngeal and gastric carcinomas; mesenchymal tumors such as follicular dendritic cell tumor/sarcoma; and lymphoid malignancies such as Burkitt lymphoma, lymphomatoid granulomatosis, pyothorax-associated lymphoma, immunodeficiency-associated lymphoproliferative disorders, extranodal natural killer (NK) cell/T-cell lymphoma, and Hodgkin's lymphoma. The purpose of this article is to describe the spectrum of EBV-related diseases and their key imaging findings. EBV-related lymphoproliferative disorders and lymphomas are especially common in immunocompromised patients. Awareness of their clinical settings and imaging spectrum contributes to early detection and early treatment of possibly life-threatening disorders.