PAROXYSMAL COLD HEMOGLOBINURIA ASSOCIATED WITH NON-HODGKINS-LYMPHOMA

This report describes a patient with severe unexplained recurrent hemo lytic anemia and congestive heart failure. Donath-Landsteiner antibodi es, suggestive of paroxysmal cold hemoglobinuria (PCH), were detected. On postmortem examination, a diagnosis of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, pri marily involving the heart, was made. This previously undescribed asso ciation expands on the clinical and serologic spectrum of non-Hodgkin' s lymphoma and PCH. Unexplained hemolytic anemia in the elderly should raise the suspicion of an underlying lymphoproliferative disorder.