ROLE OF EARLY SPLENECTOMY IN MALIGNANT-LYMPHOMAS WITH PROMINENT SPLENIC INVOLVEMENT (PRIMARY LYMPHOMAS OF THE SPLEEN) - A STUDY OF 59 CASES

The outcomes were analyzed retrospectively of 59 cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) that included prominent splenic involvement (LPS). Forty-three patients had low-grade NHL, and 16 had intermediate or high-grade NHL. Forty of the 59 patients underwent splenectomy. Four patients died postoperatively before any treatment, and 10 others received no chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Twenty-nine splenectomized and 16 patients whose spleens were not removed received chemotherapy or radiation therapy. One or more cytopenias were present in 45 patients (77%). Five (18%) of the 28 patients who initially were cytopenic underwent splenectomies that did not correct their blood disorders. The median actuarial survival was 108 months in splenectomized patients and 24 months in those not treated surgically (P 0.0001). For the 40 splenectomized patients, a normal postoperative platelet count, an initial hemoglobin level of 110 g/l or more, and a postoperative hemoglobin level 110 g/l or more were associated with prolonged survival. These results suggest that cytopenias are frequent in LPS and that their reversal is observed after early,splenectomy in 82% of cases. The absence of cytopenia after early splenectomy is associated with prolonged survival.