title: Favourable effect of chemotherapy on clinical symptoms and human herpesvirus-8 DNA load in a patient with Kaposi's sarcoma presenting with fever and anemia.
abstract: The case of a patient infected with human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) with Kaposi's sarcoma who presented with fever of unknown origin, severe anemia, thrombocytopenia and hypoalbuminemia but only limited involvement of the skin is presented. Chemotherapy directed at Kaposi's sarcoma resulted in resolution of these clinical signs and symptoms and was associated with a significant reduction in human herpesvirus-8 DNA load in serum, despite continued HIV-1 replication. Such a decreasing human herpesvirus-8 load following Kaposi's sarcoma-directed chemotherapy has not been reported previously. These findings suggest that Kaposi's sarcoma was indeed responsible for the clinical syndrome and that this neoplasm is a source of human herpesvirus-8 virus particle production, which can be inhibited by chemotherapy-induced reduction in tumor burden.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. j.m.prins@amc.uva.nl
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Prins
authors.forename: C J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Sol
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Renwick
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Goudsmit
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Veenstra
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Reiss
mesh_terms: D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology; D000328:Adult; D000740:Anemia / Q000209:etiology; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001761:Bleomycin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D004279:DNA, Viral; D004317:Doxorubicin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005334:Fever / Q000209:etiology; D019288:Herpesvirus 8, Human / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D012514:Sarcoma, Kaposi / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000821:virology*; D014750:Vincristine / Q000627:therapeutic use; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D004279:DNA, Viral; D001761:Bleomycin; D014750:Vincristine; D004317:Doxorubicin