Association between primary Sjögren's syndrome and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma

Abstract

Sjögren's Syndrome (SS) is one of the most frequent autoimmune disorders, which affects approximately 1% of the population. It occurs in patients of all ages, but especially females during the fourth and fifth decades of life with a female/male ratio of 9:1. The main target of this disease are the exocrine glands that are infiltrated progressively by lymphocytes and finally destroyed, leading to decreased exocrine secretion. Thus primary SS is usually defined as xerophtalmia (dry eye) and xerostomia (dry mouth) accompanied in 60% of cases by parotid swelling [1]. The most serious complication of Sjögren's Syndrome is the high risk of the occurrence of non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma.