Summary

Hodgkin's lymphoma involving the appendix in young children is an exceptionally rare disease. We report a case of a child less than 3 years who presented to us with gradual weight loss, progressive pallor and diffuse abdominal pain. The symptoms were preceded by a history of varicella infection about 6 months ago. The clinical progression was marked by intermittent episodes of acute abdominal pain and fever, mimicking acute intra-abdominal inflammatory process such as appendicitis. Investigations revealed that the child had direct Coomb's test positive haemolytic anaemia, raised platelet counts, lymphopenia and hypergammaglobulinaemia. The CT of the abdomen showed the presence of significant lymph nodes. Abdominal laparoscopy and biopsy of the lymph nodes showed mixed cellularity Hodgkin's lymphoma that also involved the appendix. Subsequent staging detected an advanced stage IV disease. The child was referred immediately to a specialised oncology centre for further management. Unfortunately he was lost in follow-up.