Diffuse large B cell lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common lymphoma in Western countries and, despite improvements obtained with chemoimmunotherapy, up to half of these patients cannot be cured [1, 2]. Currently, two main DLBCL subtypes are recognized based on their phenotypic homology with their putative cell of origin, the germinal center B-cell type and the activated B-cell like (ABC) type [2–5]. ABC-DLBCL is less responsive to standard regimens and is characterized by activation of B-cell receptor signaling and the nuclear factor kB pathway [2–5], providing therapeutic targets that are currently being explored in the clinic with compounds such as the Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) inhibitor ibrutinib .