Sporadic Burkitt Lymphoma Involving the Orbit – A Report of Two Cases and Review of Literature

ABSTRACT

Burkitt lymphoma (BL) is an aggressive, rapidly growing B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma found predominantly in children and has three clinical subtypes. The sporadic subtype, seen in non-endemic areas, typically presents as an abdominal mass. Primary orbital involvement is rarely reported. We report two cases of sporadic orbital BL manifesting as unilateral rapidly progressive proptosis with orbit being the initial site of presentation. Following an incision biopsy, BL was confirmed on histopathology and immunohistochemistry. Both patients demonstrated a remarkable improvement with systemic chemotherapy. Burkitt lymphomas grow rapidly with the potential for vision loss. Albeit rare, clinicians should be aware of this entity as timely diagnosis and initiation with chemotherapy display a dramatic response.

KEYWORDS:

• B- cell tumor
• Burkitt lymphoma
• non – Hodgkin lymphoma

Acknowledgments

Dr. Olma Veena Noronha, Consultant Radiologist, VRR Scan Centre, Chennai, India

Dr. Krishnakumar Subramanian, Larson and Turbo Department of Ocular Pathology, Vision Research Foundation, Sankara Nethralaya, Chennai, India

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Presentation

This study has been presented at International Ocular Adnexal Oncology Webinar on August 30 2020.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher’s website.

Additional information

Funding

The authors reported there is no funding associated with the work featured in this article.