An Unusual Presentation of B-Cell Lymphoma as a Large Isolated Epiglottic Mass: Case Report and Literature Review

Hypopharyngeal Diffuse Large B-Cell Lymphoma in a 74-Year-Old Man Presenting with Dysphagia: A Case Report

BACKGROUND Malignant lymphomas can occur at various sites. Hypopharyngeal tumors are at risk for airway obstruction and require rapid diagnosis and treatment. Most hypopharyngeal malignancies are squamous cell carcinomas; other tumors are rare. To date, only a few cases of malignant hypopharyngeal lymphoma have been reported, and its specific characteristics are unknown. Herein, we report a case of right hypopharyngeal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in a 74-year-old man with dysphagia. CASE REPORT A 74-year-old man presented to our hospital with dysphagia. He had no relevant medical history. Endoscopic examination revealed a right hypopharyngeal tumor. The surface of the tumor was smooth, with no evidence of hemorrhage. Computed tomography revealed a 40-mm mass located in the hypopharynx. We performed a tracheotomy and biopsy of the tumor. Histopathological examination revealed a diffuse proliferation of large atypical B cells with negative staining for Epstein-Barr virus by in situ hybridization. Immunohistochemical staining was positive for CD20 but negative for CD3 and CD10. The patient was administered chemotherapy. The tumor reduced in size, and the patient recovered completely. During the two-year follow up, no recurrence of cancer was observed. CONCLUSIONS Although most hypopharyngeal tumors are squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), the possibility of other types of tumors should also be considered. Malignant lymphoma of the hypopharynx is rare, and more cases need to be studied and reported in the future.

Laryngeal Anaplastic Lymphoma Kinase-Positive B-cell Lymphoma: Case Report and Review

Larynx is an uncommon extranodal site for non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK)-positive B-cell lymphoma is a rare and aggressive form of NHL. A 19-year-old male presented to the ENT department with globus sensation, hoarseness, cervical lymphadenopathy and weight loss. A 70-degree rigid endoscopic examination of the larynx showed a vascular, irregular, submucosal mass arising from the right aryepiglottic fold causing near complete obstruction of the laryngeal airway. PET-CT showed hypermetabolic lesions in the supraglottis, cervical lymph nodes, cervical spine, ribs and abdominal lymph nodes. Biopsy was taken from the supraglottic mass as well as the enlarged cervical lymph nodes, which revealed ALK-positive large B-cell NHL. In this report, we present a rare case of ALK-positive large B-cell NHL of the larynx, discussing its clinical, radiological and pathological features. A limited review of literature is also presented. There is a need to develop a database for the description of lymphomas affecting the larynx and this case report adds to the existing knowledge of this rare entity.

Primary diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the Larynx

The larynx is a rare site of extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), accounting for less than 1% of all primary laryngeal neoplasms. We report a rare case of laryngeal diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) in an 85-year-old female patient, which was difficult to diagnose even after several biopsies from the primary laryngeal lesion, both under local and general anesthesia, and the diagnosis of DLBCL was obtained from the lymph node biopsy, which appeared in the proximity of the larynx 2 months after the first biopsy from the larynx. Since the diagnosis of laryngeal NHL is sometimes difficult when sufficient samples cannot be obtained, repeated biopsies may be required. Due to the small number of cases, there is no definite consensus regarding the best management of laryngeal NHL. Thus, a standard treatment option for DLBCL, such as 3 courses of R-CHOP (rituximab + cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine and prednisone) followed by Involved-field radiation therapy, or 6∼8 course of R-CHOP, are also applied for the treatment of laryngeal DLBCL. For this case, doxorubicin was not adopted and 8 courses of R-COP (rituximab + cyclophosphamide, vincristine and prednisone) at a decreased dose were chosen because of her age (85-year-old) and cardiac hypofunction.