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Case Reports
. 2018 Sep 10:19:1074-1077.
doi: 10.12659/AJCR.910374.

A Case of Ocular Kaposi's Sarcoma Successfully Treated with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) Combined with Docetaxel

Chongfei Jin  1   2 , Hamza Minhas  3 , Amandeep Kaur  1 , Sreenath Kodali  3 , Vladimir Gotlieb  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

A Case of Ocular Kaposi's Sarcoma Successfully Treated with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy (HAART) Combined with Docetaxel

Chongfei Jin et al. Am J Case Rep. .

Abstract

BACKGROUND Ocular Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) involving the conjunctiva and ocular adnexa is uncommon and is usually treated with cryotherapy or surgical excision. We report a case of ocular KS successfully treated with HAART combined with 8 cycles of weekly docetaxel. CASE REPORT Our patient was a 24-year-old, treatment-naïve, HIV-positive (CD4 cell count 198 cells/mm3), homosexual man treated as having atypical hordeolum and subconjunctival hemorrhage, and later confirmed with pathology to have ocular KS with immunohistochemistry study showing KS with positive HHV8, CD34, CD31, and focal positive staining with Factor VIIIRA. HAART therapy was initiated combined with weekly docetaxel. With 2-month treatment of HAART and 8 cycles of weekly docetaxel, the KS of the bulbar conjunctiva and the eyelid partially resolved. CONCLUSIONS HAART combined with weekly docetaxel is an effective and well-tolerated option for ocular KS, which could be considered before cryotherapy or surgical excision.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None declared

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Chest CT scan revealed bilateral diffuse patchy infiltrates due to Kaposi’s sarcoma.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Oral involvement of Kaposi’s sarcoma (post-biopsy of a pedunculated gingival mass located at anterior maxillary gingiva between teeth 6–8).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Comparison between pretreatment and post-treatment of Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS). (A) KS on the right swollen eyelid with bilateral bulbar conjunctival KS. (B) Eyelid KS and bulbar conjunctival KS responded very well to 2-month treatment with HAART and 8 cycles of weekly docetaxel.
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