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Successful treatment of multicentric Castleman's disease with combined immunochemotherapy in an AIDS patient with multiorgan failure

Leukemia volume 22, pages 1782–1785 (2008)Cite this article

Here we describe the complicated course of a 33-year-old African male with AIDS, with multiorgan failure due to multicentric Castleman's disease (MCD).

Multicentric Castleman's disease is a generalized lymphoproliferative disorder with poor prognosis. It is highly associated with HIV and human herpes virus-8 (HHV-8) infection. Overall mortality in HIV-positive patients is 70–85%, with a median survival of 8–14 months. A total of 15–20% develop intermediate- to high-grade non-Hodgkin lymphoma most commonly of the immunoblastic type.1, 2, 3 MCD occurs independently of high-activity antiretroviral therapy as well as CD4+ cell count and viral load. Prognosis is poor,2 especially when combined with further complications, and diagnosis is difficult, with histology showing plasmacellular infiltrates.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. 2nd Medical Department (Hematology, Oncology, Immunology), University Hospital of Tuebingen, Tübingen, Germany

    S M Schmidt & F Mayer

  2. 1st Medical Department (Gastroenterology, Hepatology, Infectious Diseases), University Hospital of Tuebingen, Tübingen, Germany

    A Raible, F Kortüm, M Gregor & A L Bissinger

  3. 8th Medical Department (Intensive care unit), University Hospital of Tuebingen, Tübingen, Germany

    R Riessen

  4. Institute of Pathology, University of Wuerzburg, Würzburg, Germany

    P Adam

Authors
  1. S M Schmidt
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  2. A Raible
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  3. F Kortüm
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  4. F Mayer
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  5. R Riessen
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  8. A L Bissinger
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Correspondence to S M Schmidt.

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Schmidt, S., Raible, A., Kortüm, F. et al. Successful treatment of multicentric Castleman's disease with combined immunochemotherapy in an AIDS patient with multiorgan failure. Leukemia 22, 1782–1785 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1038/leu.2008.54

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