Diffuse large B cell lymphoma primarily presenting as acute liver failure in a surviving patient

Abstract

Acute liver failure (ALF) is a relatively rare presentation of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, often found only during postmortem examination in patients. We treated a 33-year-old woman with prominent jaundice who was diagnosed with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma presenting as ALF. We could not perform liver biopsy during the critical phase because of coagulopathy, but gastric biopsy showed the infiltration of lymphoma cells. The patient was successfully treated with rituximab and chemotherapy and she survived. Malignant lymphoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of patients who show liver dysfunction, and biopsy should be performed.