Upfront Surgery for Small Intestinal Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

Background/Aim: The clinical significance of surgery for secondary small intestinal non-Hodgkin's lymphomas (NHL) remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the efficacy of resection for both primary and secondary small intestinal NHL. Patients and Methods: Twenty patients with small intestinal lymphoma who underwent surgical resection at our Institute between 2009 and 2017 were retrospectively evaluated. The clinicopathological and surgery-related factors were reviewed. We also analyzed their surgical outcomes such as postoperative complications, perforation rate, and overall survival (OS). Results: In total, 13 (65%) and 7 (35%) patients had primary and secondary lymphomas, respectively. A total of 70% of patients were diagnosed with aggressive-type lymphomas. A total of 15 (75%) patients had Lugano system stage IV. Only one (5%) patient experienced postoperative grade II deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism. The 3-year OS rate after surgery was 59.6%. Conclusion: Surgical resection prior to chemotherapy is a feasible and safe therapeutic strategy for small intestinal NHL.