PRIMARY BILATERAL B-CELL RENAL LYMPHOMA - A CASE-REPORT AND REVIEW OFTHE LITERATURE

Renal lymphoma is commonly secondary to lymphomatous infiltration of t he kidneys in disseminated lymphoma and advanced stage N disease. We d escribe a 57-year-old white woman presenting with an acute renal failu re due to a bilateral ''primary'' B-cell lymphoma infiltration of the kidneys. The diagnosis of the lymphoma was made by renal biopsy. The s triking feature observed was a destructive infiltration of the kidney by a malignant B-cell lymphoma that left the renal capsule intact, wit hout any sign of secondary localization on the hilar regions. Physical examination did not reveal any peripheral lymphadenopathy or hepatosp lenomegaly. A bilateral infiltration of both kidneys was the only feat ure shown by computed tomography and renal angiography. This case rais es the question of the occurrence of a primary B-cell lymphoma in a no nlymphoid organ, which was diagnosed by renal biopsy at a time when th e development was exclusively renal in origin. (C) 1994 by the Nationa l Kidney Foundation, Inc.