Transient leukaemia cutis in chronic lymphocytic leukaemia.
Leukaemia cutis arises due to cutaneous infiltration of neoplastic leukocytes or their precursors. Recent evidence suggests that this sign does not necessarily herald a poor prognosis. We describe a 72-year-old woman with B-cell chronic lymphatic leukaemia (CLL) who developed a papular eruption on her breast at the site of a recent herpetic eruption. Histology and immunostaining showed a dense dermal B-cell infiltrate in keeping with leukaemia cutis. The papules cleared in 6 months without treatment, leaving atrophic scars. The histological features and possible aetiological mechanisms of post-herpetic papular eruptions in CLL are reviewed.
Wakelin
S H
SH
Department of Dermatology, Amersham Hospital, Bucks, UK.
Young
E
E
Kelly
S
S
Turner
M
M
D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D015451:Leukemia, Lymphocytic, Chronic, B-Cell / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D017254:Leukemic Infiltration; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology*