Role of PET/CT in the diagnosis, staging, and follow-up of a nasal-type natural killer T-cell lymphoma in the larynx: a case report and literature review

摘要

Background: Nasal-type natural killer T-cell lymphoma involving the larynx is uncommon. Our search revealed only 12 cases reported previously in the English-language literature. Case report: We report a case of laryngeal NKTCL. In December 2011, the patient was diagnosed with nasal-type NKTCL and FDG PET/CT showed the lesions were confined to the nasal cavity (stage I). At 1 year after radiotherapy, the patient presented with hoarseness and FDG PET/CT revealed high FDG uptake in the subglottic region and left cervical lymph nodes. A biopsy of the subglottis confirmed NKTCL (stage II). He then received chemotherapy and 14 months after the completion of chemotherapy, FDG PET/CT showed no evidence of recurrence or metastasis. Conclusions: PET/CT has better sensitivity than other conventional methods and may play an important role in the diagnosis, staging, and follow-up of nasal-type natural killer T-cell lymphoma.