BODY-CAVITY-BASED LYMPHOMA IN AN ELDERLY AIDS-UNRELATED MALE

Body-cavity-based lymphoma (BCBL) is a recently described subtype of h uman non-Hodgkin's lymphoma characterized by the localization of neopl astic cells exclusively in the body cavities. BCBL is found most commo nly in AIDS patients, and is known to be highly associated with Kaposi 's sarcoma-associated herpes virus (KSHV). We describe here a case of BCBL that occurred in a 101-year-old man. He was successively treated with etoposide, but died 8 months after the diagnosis of BCBL. No lymp homa masses were noted at pre-and postmortem examinations. KSHV was de monstrated in large numbers in the neoplastic cells using semiquantita tive PCR analysis. Although there have been four brief reports of HIV negative BCBL, the present case is the first for which the detailed cl inical course and response to chemotherapy have been recorded. (C) 199 8 Published by Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.