Non-Hodgkin Lymphomas of the Oral Cavity in AIDS Patients in a Reference Hospital of Infectious Diseases in Argentina: Report of Eleven Cases and Review of the Literature

CORTI MARCELO; VILLAFAÑE MARÍA FLORENCIA; SOLARI L; DE CAROLIS L; CANGELOSI D; SANTORO J ; SCHTIRBU R; LEWI D; BISTMANS A; NARBAITZ M; BARÉ PATRICIA

J Gastrointest Cancer

New York, NY : Humana Press

Lugar: New York; Año: 2011 p. 143 - 148

1941-6628

Abstract Introduction: Extranodal non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) were commonly described in AIDS patients and are related with an atypical morphology and aggressive clinical course. Materials and Methods: In this single institutional study we evaluated the epidemiological, clinical, immunological, virological, histopathological and the outcome of eleven HIV/AIDS patients with oral cavity lymphomas (OCL). Results: Nine were males and seven intravenous drug abusers. The median of age was 33 years and the median of CD4 T cell counts at the time of diagnosis was 97 cell/ μL. The majority of tumors presented as large and ulcerated masses involving the gingiva, the palate and the jaw. Six of these tumors were diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL); three were Burkitt’s lymphomas and the final case was a plasmablastic lymphoma. An association with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) was found in three of the ten tested cases by in situ hybridization (EBER 1 and 2 probes) and immunohistochemistry (LMP-1). Human herpes virus- 8 (HHV-8) was detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) in only one neoplasm. Six patients died without specific treatment; four received chemotherapy and highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and three of them presented a prolonged survival. Discussion Combination of HAART and chemotherapy should modify the poor prognosis of AIDS patients with OCL.