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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Indian J Med Paediatr Oncol 2013; 34(02): 99-100
DOI: 10.4103/0971-5851.116188
CASE REPORT

Acute visual loss as the initial presentation in a child with systemic Burkitt lymphoma

Maria Kourti
Department of Pediatric Oncology, Hippokration General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
,
Elpidoforos Mantadakis
Department of Radiology, Hippokration General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
,
Athanassia Anastasiou
Department of Pediatrics, Dimokritus University of Thrace, Alexandroupolis, Greece
,
Dimitrios Koliouskas
Department of Pediatric Oncology, Hippokration General Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece
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Abstract

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) accounts for 10% of pediatric malignancies and is the third most common malignancy in childhood. We report a previous healthy 3-year-old boy with stage IV Burkitt lymphoma presenting with acute visual loss. In funduscopy his pupils were fixed at 6 mm in diameter without light perception. He started therapy according to the UKCCSG 9003 protocol. The boy didn′t show any visual improvement but some slight light perception despite his partial remission after CYVE II. He died of neutropenic septicemia before his scheduled radiotherapy. In conclusion, loss of vision is a rare presenting sign in NHL. Differential diagnosis is crucial as early diagnosis and effective treatment are important for survival as well as for visual restoration.

Keywords

Blindness - Burkitt lymphoma - childhood


Publication History

Article published online:
20 July 2021

© 2013. Indian Society of Medical and Paediatric Oncology. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/.)

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