A not-so-uncommon presentation of an uncommon disease: nasal natural killer/T-cell lymphoma

HHF Loong, CY Cheung, YK Lam
Department of Clinical Oncology, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong

An otherwise well 70-year-old man presented with a non-specific complaint of epistaxis caused by an underlying necrotic natural killer�cell lymphoma complicated by a maggot infestation. He failed to attend for treatment after discharge but re-presented 3 weeks later with an acute exacerbation of his chronic pulmonary obstructive disease. During those 3 weeks his nasal condition had advanced rapidly with extensive tumour infiltration and necrosis affecting his nose and face. The natural clinical course, overall prognosis, and available treatment modalities are briefly discussed.

Hong Kong Med J 2006;12:470-2

Key words: Epistaxis; Killer cells, natural; Lymphoma