Characteristics of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of gastrointestinal tract: A single center experience

Objectives: Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is a heterogeneous disease, with approximately one-third of patients presenting with extranodal involvement. The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is the most commonly affected extranodal site. This retrospective study aimed to evaluate the clinical characteristics and treatment outcomes of patients diagnosed with GI-DLBCL at a tertiary care hospital between 2015 and 2024. Patients and Methods: Data of patients diagnosed with GI-DLBCL were retrospectively collected from electronic medical records. Patients with lymphoma subtypes other than DLBCL were excluded from the study. Results: A total of 35 patients were included. The median age at diagnosis was 57 years, and 48.6% were male. The most frequent histologic subtype was “DLBCL, not otherwise specified (NOS)”. The stomach was the most common site of extranodal involvement. Two-thirds of the patients presented with advanced-stage disease. Rituximab-based therapies including cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisolone with rituximab (R-CHOP) were administered as first-line treatment in 82.9% of patients, and a complete response was achieved in 71.4%. At a median follow-up of 45 months, median progression-free survival and overall survival had not yet been reached. Conclusion: Despite a high rate of advanced-stage disease, R-CHOP treatment achieved high response rates and durable survival. Molecular profiling may help better understand the biological heterogeneity of GI-DLBCL.