Malignant lymphoma of mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue of the lacrimal gland: Case report and review of literature

Mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphomas are increasingly recognized as a distinct clinical-pathologic entity among the non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. It usually presents as a localized disease process in extranodal tissues or organs such as stomach, salivary gland, thyroid gland, and not infrequently in orbital adnexa. Radiotherapy has an important role in the management, although long-term clinical results specifically addressing localized MALT lymphomas are lacking. We report a case of localized MALT lymphoma of the lacrimal gland, with successful treatment by radiation therapy (total dose 25 Gy) with 3 years of clinical follow-up. A review of the published literature was undertaken to assess the role of radiotherapy in the treatment of this disease involving orbital tissues, specifically, the lacrimal gland. Based on previous reports of patients with orbital lymphomas (low grade) and pseudolymphomas, of which many will now be recognized as MALT lymphomas, radiotherapy has an excellent local control rate and would be the treatment of choice. However, long-term results of pathologically confirmed cases of MALT lymphomas need further study because occasional relapses at distant sites can occur.