Case Report: A Woman with Fever, Acute Changes in Mental State, and Progressive Neurological Degeneration

Abstract

Introduction: Anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), which was first described by Stein in 1985 as a feature of CD30 positivity, is now acknowledged as a distinct subset of T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas (NHL). It accounts for approximately 3% of adult NHL while constitutes as many as 30%–40% of pediatric large-cell lymphomas. It is rarely metastasized to other sites, especially to the central nervous system (CNS). Case Report: We present a case of a 73-year-old woman hospitalized for fever, acute behavioral changes, and progressive neurological degeneration; a rare case of systemic ALCL which metastasized to the brain. There are very few case reports of this matter in the literature. Conclusion: In the management of patients with neurological impairment, cognitive, and behavioral changes, we suspect the presence of lymphomas associated with the CNS still suspicious of other primary causes. Keywords: Anaplastic large-cell lymphoma, anaplastic lymphoma kinase gene, primary central nervous system lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, T-cell lymphoma, lymph node enlargement.