A case of non-hodgkin's lymphoma of the ovary: usefulness of 18F-FDG PET for staging and assessment of the therapeutic response.

Primary ovarian lymphoma as the initial manifestation is rare. A 27-year-old woman presented to our hospital with the symptoms of lower abdominal fullness and pollakisuria. CT scan and MRI revealed bilateral ovarian tumors, which showed heterogeneous masses. 18F-FDG PET revealed strong uptake by the abdominal masses, and the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax) was 12.5. Abnormal uptake was not shown by other regions. An exploratory laparotomy was performed. Histological findings revealed diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. The clinical stage was IV according to the Ann Arbor system. International prognostic index (IPI) was 3 (high-intermediate risk). Chemotherapy was administered consisting of three courses of an R-CHOP regimen, and 18F-FDG PET and CT scan revealed no signs of involvement 3 months after initiation of the chemotherapy. 18F-FDG PET was a useful method for staging and assessment of the therapeutic response in primary ovarian lymphoma.