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Glans penis involvement: an under-recognized manifestation of chronic GVHD

Bone Marrow Transplantation volume 47, pages 1006–1007 (2012)Cite this article

Genital manifestations of chronic GVHD (cGVHD) are generally thought to be limited to female patients, and organ system assessment forms generated by NIH Chronic GVHD Consensus Group include only female genital tract findings. It is not clear whether male genital organ involvement is truly a rare phenomenon in cGVHD, or is simply under-recognized. We report here glans penis involvement in a 41-year-old man, which was discovered when he presented with flare of his cutaneous and oral cGVHD.

The patient is a 41-year-old man who underwent 8/8 HLA-matched related allogeneic PBSC transplantation from his brother for his multiply relapsed acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). The conditioning regimen consisted of fludarabine and melphalan, and GVHD prophylaxis included tacrolimus and low-dose MTX. His post transplant course was significant for acute GVHD of the skin, followed by quiescent onset of lichenoid cGVHD involving mainly his skin, liver and oral cavity. He had multiple flares of cGVHD and responded each time to systemic and topical immunosuppression with various doses and schedules of tacrolimus, methylprednisolone and mycophenolic acid. Severe oral lesions involving his upper and lower lips, bilateral buccal mucosa and tongue were the most difficult to treat. He also developed a herpes zoster infection on his right frontal scalp, complicated by severe chronic post-herpetic neuralgia.

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  1. Marlene and Stewart Greenebaum Cancer Center, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA

    J Yared, I Gojo & G Akpek

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  1. J Yared
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  2. I Gojo
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  3. G Akpek
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Correspondence to G Akpek.

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Yared, J., Gojo, I. & Akpek, G. Glans penis involvement: an under-recognized manifestation of chronic GVHD. Bone Marrow Transplant 47, 1006–1007 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/bmt.2011.209

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