Abstract
A 78-year-old man was admitted to the hospital because of appetite loss and general fatigue. He was diagnosed as having diffuse large B-cell cell lymphoma following bone marrow examination. Three days after the start of steroid therapy, he experienced upper abdominal pain and a sudden decrease in blood pressure.
A high-absorption region and extravasation in the upper abdominal cavity were observed on a computed tomography scan. Splenic rupture or bleeding from the short gastric artery was suspected. The patient underwent splenectomy to treat a rupture in the upper spleen. Fourteen days after surgery, he was transferred to hematology department without complications. In spite of starting chemotherapy (R-CHOP), the patient's condition worsened, and he died 75 days after surgery. Patients with malignant lymphoma should be carefully followed up to help avoid splenic rupture.
