Plasmablastic lymphoma in an HIV-negative patient with complete remission after chemotherapy with DA-EPOCH

Abstract

Plasmablastic lymphoma (PBL) is a rare subtype of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma originally described in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients. However, recent reports have described this neoplasia in HIV-negative patients. This neoplasia usually arises in extranodal tissues, such as the gastrointestinal tract, abdominal cavity and retroperitoneum. Here a case is presented of an HIV-negative patient with a history of stage II rectal cancer for which he received chemotherapy and radiotherapy with a complete response. However, in the following years, the patient presented clinical deterioration and the presence of an exophytic mass with fistulous tracts. For this reason, the patient underwent a new biopsy of the rectum which showed a plasmablastic lymphoma of the rectum, with an extensive local compromise that presented complete remission after 6 cycles of chemotherapy with a DA-EPOCH regimen.