Peripheral Cytotoxic T Cell Lymphoma of the AppendixPresenting as Acute Appendicitis

Lymphoma of the appendix is a rare cause of acute appendicitis; however, acute appendicitis is a commonfirstmanifestation of appendiceal lymphomas. Cytotoxic peripheral T cell lymphoma (PTCL) is a type of aggressive non-Hodgkinlymphoma that portends a generally poor outcome. Cytotoxic PTCL of the appendix is extremely rare with few cases reportedin the literature.Case Presentation. This is the report of a 23-year-old man who had experienced lower abdominal pain for threemonths before presenting to the emergency department with severe right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and anorexiasince the day prior to admission. The patient was diagnosed with acute appendicitis, and the pathology report confirmedcytotoxic PTCL of the appendix.Conclusion. Patients with appendiceal PTCL commonly present with signs and symptoms ofacute appendicitis due to luminal obstruction by the tumor. Therefore, appendiceal tumors such as PTCL should be consideredin the differential diagnosis of patients presenting as acute appendicitis. In addition, since there is no standard chemotherapyregimen for cytotoxic PTCL, this and other case reports hopefully help in providing the clinical evidence needed for establishingappropriate treatment guidelines.