Disseminated Presentation of Primary Lymphoblastic Lymphoma of the Bone in a Pediatric Patient

Lisa A Cao,Samuel French,Joseph L Lasky,Alya Sheikh,Xin Qing,Eduard H Panosyan

doi:10.4236/jct.2015.66058

Abstract

Primary non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma of the bone (PLB) is extremely rare in the pediatric population with less than 100 cases reported in the English literature. Most commonly, patients present with atraumatic bone pain and grossly normal radiographic findings. PLB is in the histopathological class of “small round cell tumors of bone”, as with most common bone tumors. The diagnosis is confirmed by immunohistochemical or flow cytometry based detection of tumor-specific proteins. We present a case of stage IV PLB of B-lymphoblastic type with an excellent response to chemotherapy to increase awareness among general pediatricians and pathologists about the importance of making the correct diagnosis, given the excellent prognosis for this disease.

Highlights

Primary non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma of the bone (PLB) is uncommon in adults, and it is even rarer in the pediatric population [1]
PLB is a unique entity in that bony lesions are the primary site of origin of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
We present a case of stage IV PLB of lymphoblastic type with an excellent response to chemotherapy to increase awareness among the general pediatricians and pathologists about the good outcomes of correct diagnosis

Summary

Introduction

Primary non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma of the bone (PLB) is uncommon in adults, and it is even rarer in the pediatric population [1]. The bony lesions are commonly found in the axial skeleton or long bones, such as the pelvis and femur, can be initially misdiagnosed as classic bone tumor, such as Ewing sarcoma or osteosarcoma [4]. The pathological finding of PLB is “small round cell tumors of bone” This is not pathognomonic for this diagnosis or any of the other common bone tumors that are predominantly seen in children and adolescents. We present a case of stage IV PLB of lymphoblastic type with an excellent response to chemotherapy to increase awareness among the general pediatricians and pathologists about the good outcomes of correct diagnosis. Parental and patient’s permission was obtained for this case report

Clinical Summary

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Discussion

Conclusion