DEVELOPMENT OF PSEUDOLYMPHOMA OF LIVER FOLLOWING INTERFERON-ALPHA THERAPY FOR CHRONIC HEPATITIS-B

A 42-year-old woman with biopsy-proven chronic hepatitis B, who had be en treated with human leukocyte-derived interferon-alpha (huLe-IFN alp ha) therapy for two months was found to have liver tumors on routine a bdominal ultrasonography examination. She underwent laparotomy, and pa rtial hepatectomy was performed under the clinical diagnosis of hepato cellular carcinoma, The lesions were diagnosed histologically as pseud olymphoma based on the massive infiltration of small mature lymphocyte s and the presence of hyperplastic lymph follicles with germinal cente rs. Immunohistochemistry revealed polyclonal origin of the involved ly mphocytes. The possible association between IFN alpha treatment and ch ronic hepatitis B with the development of pseudolymphoma is discussed.