A pediatric case with disseminated Burkitt lymphoma presenting with facial soft tissue swelling and dental pain

Abstract

Burkitt and Burkitt-like lymphomas constitute 40% of childhood lymphomas and are malignancies that require urgent diagnosis and treatment. Here, we present a case of a 10-year-old male patient who was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma and applied to the dentist with complaints of pain in the left upper molars and facial swelling for 2 weeks. Magnetic resonance imaging showed significant soft tissue swelling around the mandible and maxillary tooth roots in the lower and upper jaws. The patient was diagnosed with Burkitt lymphoma in the histopathological examination of the gingival biopsy. Diffuse bone marrow involvement and hyperuricemia due to tumor lysis syndrome were detected in this pediatric patient. The patient with stage IV Burkitt lymphoma has been successfully treated with intensive chemotherapy protocols and has been in remission for 5 years. Burkitt lymphoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis of soft tissue swellings in the jaw and orofacial region presenting with dental pain in childhood.