Non-hodgkin B-cell lymphoma of the ovary in a child with Ataxia-telangiectasia

Abstract

Background: Ataxia-telangiectasia is a multisystem, life-limiting, recessively inherited genetic disorder caused by mutations in the Ataxia-telangiectasia mutated gene. It is characterized by the onset of changes in neurological and immunological development, organ maturation in childhood, as well as a high incidence of malignancies.

Case: We describe a case of an 11-year-old girl with a history of progressive ataxia and new finding of bilateral pelvic masses. Given an elevated alpha-fetoprotein, the pre-operative working diagnosis was a malignant germ cell tumor. Final ovarian pathology revealed a non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma with Burkitt-like morphology.

Summary: We present the first case of a primary ovarian non-Hodgkin B-cell lymphoma in a child with Ataxia-telangiectasia.