Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma: a rare case in the USA and review of the literature.
Adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATLL), in its acute stage, is a uniformly fatal disease. ATLL is caused by the human T-cell lymphotropic virus I (HTLV-1), a retrovirus endemic in numerous areas throughout the world including Japan, the Caribbean, Central and South America and certain areas of the United States. Although the progression from HTLV-1 carrier status to ATLL occurs only rarely, ATLL is incurable and thus prevention of HTLV-1 transmission should be a primary goal. With the development of new anti-retroviral and monoclonal therapies, there exist potential cures or at least prolonged remissions for patients diagnosed with ATLL. We present a case of ATLL that, to our knowledge, is only the third reported case in Georgia. In addition, we present a brief review of the literature, including potential new treatment regimens that appear to have promise in the treatment of ATLL.
Brick
W G
WG
Section of Hematology/Oncology, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta 30912, USA. wbrick@mail.mcg.edu
Nalamolu
Y
Y
Jillella
A P
AP
Burgess
R E
RE
Kallab
A M
AM
D016516:CD4-CD8 Ratio; D004813:Epidemiology; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D005845:Georgia; D006801:Humans; D016130:Immunophenotyping; D015459:Leukemia-Lymphoma, Adult T-Cell / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology* / Q000635:transmission*; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018454:Spouses