Primary malignant lymphoma of the female urethra.

BACKGROUND

Malignant lymphoma rarely affects the genitourinary tract. We present a case of malignant lymphoma of the female urethra and review the associated literature to evaluate the management and prognosis.

MATERIALS AND RESULTS

A 69-year-old woman presented with a 3-month history of dysuria and a red mass at the external urethra without lymphadenopathy. Pathological examination revealed malignant lymphoma. She was treated with excision of the mass and chemotherapy. Six months later she showed no urethral or other recurrence. An additional 17 cases similar to this one were found in the literature. The one-year survival rate was 91% for local stage and less than 35% for disseminated stage. A significant difference was observed between survival rates (log rank test; p = 0.013).

CONCLUSION

It appears that therapy including excision, radiation and chemotherapy is effective for patients with local stage but not for patients with disseminated stage.