title: Use of radiotherapy to treat life-threatening Kasabach-Merritt syndrome.
abstract: Kasabach-Merritt syndrome involves thrombocytopenia, which is usually severe, in association with haemangiomata. We describe two newborn infants who developed life-threatening Kasabach-Merritt syndrome but who were successfully treated. Both had failed to respond adequately to corticosteroids and alpha-interferon. They subsequently received emergency radiotherapy. Both patients had an improvement in their platelet counts. The first infant's haemangioma gradually faded during the first 3 years of life, whereas the second infant's haemangioma had resolved 2 months after radiotherapy. No significant late effects of the radiotherapy have been noted at the 8 and 5 years follow up respectively. Radiotherapy remains an important treatment method in Kasabach-Merritt syndrome when patients fail to respond to other treatments.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Radiation Oncology, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leong
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bydder
mesh_terms: D002388:Catastrophic Illness / Q000628:therapy; D006391:Hemangioma / Q000151:congenital / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D013577:Syndrome; D054098:Thrombocytopenia, Neonatal Alloimmune / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome