title: Primary lymphoma of the liver: clinical features and outcome of 9 patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Primary liver lymphoma (PLL) is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder of unknown etiology. The prognosis in affected patients is poor, consisting of brief remissions, rapidly developing resistance to chemotherapy, early recurrence, and short survival. Most studies related to PLL are based on case reports. The aim of this retrospective study was to review our experience with PLL.
  
  
  METHODS
  From 1985 to 2000, 9 patients who fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for PLL were treated at our hospital. All patients underwent a thorough work-up and were staged accordingly.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The disease occured in middle and higher-aged patients (median age 63 years). Primary presenting complaints were abdominal pain, mainly in the right upper quadrant, and hepatomegaly. Liver function tests and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels were elevated. Liver imaging (computed tomography-CT) and isotopic methods (gallium scan) demonstrated liver involvement either as solitary or multiple space-occupying lesions. Pathologic examination demonstrated diffuse, large cell (DLCL), B-type lymphoma in 7/9 (78%) patients. Doxorubicin-based chemotherapy was the mainstay of treatment. Good partial or complete remission rates were achieved in 7 patients, albeit for a brief period of time.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Most patients with PLL succumb to their illness, despite its being relatively chemotherapy-sensitive. The introduction of intensive chemotherapy, plus/minus radiotherapy, and/or surgery has been considered in some studies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Rambain Medical Center Center and Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Stein
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ben-Schacher
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kuton
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Haim
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kuten
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Gez
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zidan
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Siegelmann-Danieli
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Epelbaum