Chronic myeloid leukaemia and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection

Abstract

The occurrence of chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML) in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) has rarely been reported in the literature. In this report, we describe the experience of a single centre in the management of 10 such patients, including demographic information, disease characteristics and response to therapy. We had a black female predominance in our series, with only a minority of patients achieving a complete cytogenetic response. The main reason for this appears to be compliance, which was influenced by distance to the treating centre. The side-effect profile was similar to that expected, with the exception of one patient who developed a drug rash with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms. Although CML patients co-morbid for HIV face certain unique challenges when compared to non-infected patients, their long-term outcome can be positive when appropriately managed.