Mucocutaneous lesions associated with lymphoproliferative disorder: a case report

Abstract

Introduction: Leukemia is a type of blood cancer characterized by the accumulation of mature or immature cells in the bone marrow (BM), peripheral blood, lymph nodes, and lymphoid tissues. These cells can cause extranodal infiltration in tissues such as skin (leukemia cutis [LC]) and mucous membranes, being these locations rare. Case presentation: The patient was referred to a university hospital, where BM and computed tomography tests were performed, showing peripheral lymphatic involvement and maxillary paranasal sinus (PNS) opacity. Subsequently, functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) of the PNS was performed and biopsies were taken from the skin lesion and PNS mucosa. Based on the results of the BM tests, the patient was diagnosed with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, so chemotherapy (CT) was initiated. The biopsy report described infiltration of leukemoid neoplastic cells in both locations (skin lesion and PNS mucosa), confirmed by immunohistochemistry. During CT, the patient developed bone marrow aplasia, tumor lysis syndrome and septic and hypovolemic shock, which eventually led to his death. Conclusion: LC is a rare condition associated with poor prognosis, so once detected it is necessary to initiate systemic treatment and look for possible extramedullary metastases. PNS opacity in patients with oncologic immunosuppression is usually considered as nasosinusal infection; however, it may also be secondary to an unusual infiltrative involvement of leukemia.