We treated a patient with chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) in whom multiple tongue nodules developed following an allogeneic peripheral blood stem-cell transplantation (allo-PBSCT) procedure. A 30-year-old man was given a diagnosis of Hodgkin’s lymphoma and underwent autologous peripheral blood stem-cell transplantation at another hospital in 2007. Relapse occurred in 2011, at which time he underwent allo-PBSCT from his brother, a matched HLA donor. Extensive stomatitis, a characteristic disorder related to chronic GVHD, developed 30 days after transplantation. The resultant ulcers on the dorsal surface of his tongue gradually resolved. However, multiple nodules appeared on the entire tongue, causing difficulty in food intake. All polypoid nodules were surgically excised with the patient under general anesthesia in our hospital, and the pathological diagnosis was fibrous polyp with mild epithelial dysplasia. At a follow-up examination 3 years later, there was no recurrence, though persistent mild oral chronic GVHD was noted. It is important to perform follow-up examinations of patients with oral GVHD soon after transplantation. If lesions suspected to be malignant are found, they should be excised as thoroughly as possible.
