Primary stage I-IIE non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of uterine cervix and upper vagina: evidence for a conservative approach in a study on three patients.

BACKGROUND: Non-Hodgkin's Lymphomas (NHL) frequently affect the uterine corpus, cervix, and vagina in cases of advanced disease. However, these organs are rarely the site of origin of this type of neoplasia. Because of the rarity of primary genital tract lymphomas, a standard treatment has not been defined. CASE: Three patients with large B-cell primary Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma of the lower genital tract (vaginal, cervical and cervico-vaginal) presented with bulky lesions and underwent diagnostic evaluation, staging, and chemotherapy with adriamycin-containing regimens. All three patients, including two with stage IIE and one with stage IE disease demonstrated complete remission and are alive and well without evidence of disease at 10, 7, and 6 years of follow-up, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: Our observations suggest that young patients with large B-cell lymphomas of lower genital tract stages I-IIE, even with bulky lesions, may benefit from chemotherapy alone as initial treatment.