1/2. Clinical spectrum of myelophthisis in cancer patients.Myelophthisis is a form of bone marrow failure due to replacement of hematopoietic tissue by abnormal tissue, most commonly metastatic carcinomas. This results in extramedullary hematopoiesis, typically in the spleen leading to premature release of hematopoietic cells into the circulation. Peripheral blood findings may include nucleated red blood cells, tear drop forms, giant platelets, and immature leukocytes. This is called a leukoerythroblastic picture. The first case demonstrates acute myelophthisis as a presentation of pancreatic cancer. The second case is of extramedullary hematopoiesis as a manifestation of widely metastatic melanoma. The presence of a leukoerythroblastic peripheral blood picture should serve as a valuable clue about a possible underlying malignancy. This late presentation of advanced cancer may now be rarely seen because of early diagnosis and more effective therapies.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = spleen (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/2. Multiple diffuse fibrosarcoma of bone associated with extramedullary hematopoiesis.We report a case of multiple diffuse fibrosarcoma of bone. The patient, a 38-year-old man, was referred to our hospital with knee pain, anemia and thrombocytopenia. No solid mass was seen on radiographic examination of the kneejoint, but magnetic resonance imaging showed hypointensity of the distal femur. Femoral biopsy revealed proliferation of long spindle-shaped fibrosarcoma cells, while a bone marrow biopsy of iliac bone (which appeared normal on radiographic examinations) showed replacement of hematopoietic cells by fibroblast-like spindle cells. A diagnosis of multiple diffuse fibrosarcoma of bone was therefore made. autopsy revealed tumor invasion into multiple bones and several visceral organs and extramedullary hematopoiesis in the liver, spleen and lymph nodes. As this patient had leukoerythroblastic anemia with poikilocytosis, splenomegaly exhibiting extramedullary hematopoiesis, and apparent fibrotic change in his bone marrow, we suggest that this extremely rare disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of myelofibrosis.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = spleen (Clic here for more details about this article) |