lymphoma of the adrenal gland
Imaging
features of adrenal masses. Left adrenal lymphomatous lesion in a 70-year-old man with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Coronal reformatted CT images before (a) and after contrast injection in portal phase (b) show a large left adrenal mass (arrow) with inhomogeneous enhancement. Axial CT image of the lower abdomen in portal phase (c; arrow) shows the gastrointestinal involvement by lymphoma as aneurysmal dilatation of some loops of the small bowel
Adrenal lymphoma can refer to:
- primary adrenal lymphoma: rare
- can be bilateral in around 70% of cases
- secondary involvement of the adrenal glands with lymphoma: more common
Clinical presentation
The presentation can be variable and may include adrenal insufficiency, worsening general state, weight loss, and abdominal pain.
Radiographic features
CT/MRI
Maybe seen as bulky adrenal masses. Often difficult to use bilaterality to differentiate primary versus secondary since the former can be bilateral in a considerable portion of cases.
Usually of soft tissue attenuation (40-60 HU) with mild progressive enhancement after contrast medium administration .
Nuclear medicine
- often FDG avid