Surgical treatment of gastrointestinal solid tumors is the basic method with a curative potential. However, the first-line treatment modalities in lymphomas are systemic oncology therapy (chemotherapy, immunotherapy and hematopoietic stem cell transplantation), radiotherapy or their combination. Surgery in lymphomas is predominantly associated with acute disease and dominantly, surgery is still used mainly in diagnosing lymphomas. Acute abdomen associated with lymphoma can be divided into 3 groups: bleeding, obstruction and perforation of GIT due to lymphoma. All these conditions might be caused by both gastrointestinal (extranodal) lymphomas or advanced nodal lymphomas that directly infiltrate or compress gastrointestinal tract (GIT) as well. Perforation is also often associated with the effect of systemic chemotherapy administration. When treating acute abdomen conditions caused by lymphomas, multidisciplinary cooperation with all participating experts is necessary. From the surgical point of view, minimizing the risk of postoperative complications is crucial to ensure the possibility of early systemic oncological treatment administration.
Keywords: GIT obstruction; acute abdomen; gastrointestinal bleeding; intestine perforation; lymphoma.