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Case Reports
. 2010 Jul 10;3(2):234-239.
doi: 10.1159/000318230.

Two Ocular Infections during Conventional Chemotherapy in a Patient with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Case Report

Ruba Taha  1 , Ibrahim Al Hijji, Halima El Omri, Fareed Al-Laftah, Riham Negm, Mohammed Yassin, Hanadi El Ayoubi
Affiliations
Case Reports

Two Ocular Infections during Conventional Chemotherapy in a Patient with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: A Case Report

Ruba Taha et al. Case Rep Oncol. .

Abstract

Viral retinitis due to cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is rare in patients with acute leukemia who did not receive hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. We report a case of CMV retinitis that developed in a 49-year-old patient with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The patient was treated with salvage chemotherapy using a hyper-CVAD regimen and did not receive hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The incidence of CMV retinitis in this subgroup of patients is not described in literature. He had a very complicated course during chemotherapy but was successfully treated, with preservation of visual acuity, and to date he is in complete remission. Interestingly, prior to CMV retinitis, the patient had been diagnosed with and treated for candida retinitis. This case shows the importance of eye examination and care in patients diagnosed with hematological malignancies.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Color photograph of the right fundus showing focal hemorrhagic retinitis superotemporal to macula (candida retinitis).
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Color photograph of the right fundus 2 weeks after starting intravenous amphotericin B: focal retinitis healed leaving a scar.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Color photo of the left fundus showing white fluffy lesions in the temporal macula surrounding retinal vessels associated with hemorrhage (CMV retinitis).
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Right and left fundi show healed retinal scars corresponding to the site of the previous retinitis (right fungal retinitis and bilateral CMV retinits).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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