Rare colorectal manifestations of pediatric gastrointestinal lymphoma: a systematic review of clinical spectrum and surgical implications.
Colorectal lymphoma in children can mimic IBD flares or cause surgical emergencies; recognizing this can prevent inappropriate escalation of immunosuppression and speed correct diagnosis and treatment.
Pediatric gastroenterologists, pediatric surgeons, clinicians treating children with IBD, parents and caregivers of pediatric IBD patients, and researchers in pediatric colorectal malignancy.
What To Know
This systematic review summarizes rare colorectal presentations of pediatric lymphoma and highlights situations where lymphoma can mimic or complicate pediatric IBD, including cases reported while children were receiving biologic therapy.
The review pooled recent case reports/series and found colorectal non-Hodgkin lymphoma in children can present like an IBD flare, colorectal carcinoma, bowel obstruction, or acute abdomen.
Some cases occurred in very young children and a few arose in the setting of inflammatory bowel disease or during treatment with biologics (one case noted while on vedolizumab).
Because lymphoma may be mistaken for IBD activity, the authors emphasize early endoscopic biopsy and imaging to avoid inappropriate escalation of immunosuppression and to guide staging and surgical planning.
Surgery is not the mainstay treatment for lymphoma but has an important role for tissue diagnosis and for managing complications such as perforation, obstruction, or intussusception; minimally invasive en-bloc resection was described as feasible in selected patients.
Pediatric gastroenterologists and surgeons, clinicians caring for children with IBD, parents/caregivers of pediatric IBD patients, and researchers studying pediatric colorectal malignancy or IBD-associated complications. This record is an abstract-level systematic review of recent case reports/series (9 articles included).
Findings summarize rare events and do not indicate how commonly these presentations occur; individual management should be guided by clinical evaluation and specialist input.
This entry is based on the article abstract (systematic review of recent case reports/series). The review highlights rare presentations and surgical implications but does not provide population-level incidence or treatment outcomes beyond case descriptions.
