Reactive lymphoid hyperplasia of liver coexisting with chronic thyroiditis: radiographical characteristics of the disorder.
BACKGROUND
Reactive lymphoid hyperplasia of the liver is an extremely rare entity, with six cases reported so far.


METHODS
We encountered a 47-year-old Japanese female with reactive lymphoid hyperplasia of the liver, which coexisted with chronic thyroiditis. The lesion was discovered incidentally as a hypo-echoic mass with a hyper-echoic rim at a routine ultrasonography examination. It increased from 12 to 17 mm diameter in 6 months. Radiological studies, such as contrast-enhanced computerized tomography (CT) and angiography demonstrated a hypervascular lesion.


RESULTS
It was consequently diagnosed as a neoplasm with malignant potentiality and she underwent partial hepatectomy. The lesion was composed of small mature lymphocytes which formed prominent lymphoid follicles with germinal centres, scattered plasma cells and stromal fibrosis. Immunohistochemical study revealed polyclonal origins of the involved lymphocytes. DNA analysis for the immunoglobulin heavy gene and the T cell receptor beta gene using Southern blot hybridization showed no monoclonality. The following features have characterized the images in past cases, as well as ours: hypo-echoic mass, occasionally with a rim, in ultrasonography and hypervascularity, shown by angiography and enhanced CT.
Second Department of Internal Medicine, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Aichi, Japan.
K
K
Nagano
Y
Y
Fukuda
I
I
Nakano
Y
Y
Katano
H
H
Toyoda
T
T
Nonami
T
T
Nagasaka
T
T
Hayakawa
D000792:Angiography; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006498:Hepatectomy; D006801:Humans; D008107:Liver Diseases / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D008875:Middle Aged; D019310:Pseudolymphoma / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000601:surgery; D013967:Thyroiditis, Autoimmune / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed