Primary hepatic lymphoma: favorable outcome after combination chemotherapy.

BACKGROUND

Primary hepatic non-Hodgkin lymphoma (PHL) is a rare and difficult to diagnose lymphoproliferative disorder of unknown etiology. It is believed that the prognosis in affected patients is dismal, consisting of early recurrence and short survival.

METHODS

A retrospective cohort review of patients with PHL diagnosed between 1974 and 1995 at a university cancer center was performed.

RESULTS

Twenty-four patients with PHL were identified. Typically, the disease occurred in middle-aged men (median age, 50 years). The primary presenting complaint was right upper quadrant abdominal pain, with hepatomegaly found at physical examination. Serum liver enzymes, lactate dehydrogenase, and beta-2-microglobulin levels all were elevated, but alpha-fetoprotein and carcinoembryonic antigen levels were within normal range. Hypercalcemia was found in 6 of 15 patients who were tested. Six of 10 patients who were tested were positive for the hepatitis C virus (HCV). Liver scans demonstrated either a solitary lesion or multiple lesions. Pathologic examination revealed diffuse large cell lymphoma in 23 patients (96%). Combination chemotherapy was the mainstay of treatment; surgery consisted of diagnostic biopsy. The complete remission rate was 83.3%, and the 5-year cause specific and failure free survival rates were 87.1% and 70.1%, respectively. HCV infection did not appear to influence the outcome of therapy.

CONCLUSIONS

The outcome of patients with PHL who are treated with combination chemotherapy may be more favorable than that reported elsewhere. The frequent association of PHL with HCV infection observed in this series warrants further investigation.