Introduction Since the introduction of tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI) as primary therapy for patients with chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), the prognosis of these patients has improved significantly, and the number of patients who progress to the blast phase has decreased considerably. Case report We report the case of a 35-year-old CML patient in accelerated phase treated with nilotinib, who presents a severe COVID-19 infection requiring non-invasive ventilation, and who subsequently presents a multiple cranial nerve palsy revealing a blast crisis of his CML. Discussion Multiple cranial nerve palsy is a sign of neurological involvement of CML in its blast phase. The blast crisis represents a real challenge for the clinician, especially during COVID-19 infection. The treatment remains the association of a TKI with a chemotherapy protocol, as well as the administration of methotrexate and cytarabine by intrathecal and intravenous infusion in high doses. Conclusion Despite the importance of the association of CML with COVID-19 infection, there is not yet enough data to know the true impact of this infection on the evolution of this hemopathy.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is the health crisis of our time and a great challenge we face, requiring the implementation of worldwide general containment. The symptoms and complications of COVID-19 are diverse, and rhabdomyolysis is an atypical manifestation. We report a case of a 63-year-old patient, admitted to the emergency room for myalgia and fever evolving over 5 days, in whom laboratory and other examinations indicated rhabdomyolysis complicated by renal insufficiency. During the diagnostic workup, the real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test result for COVID-19 was positive, revealing infection with sudden acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Although the severity of COVID-19 infection relates mainly to acute respiratory syndrome, other complications can be prognostic, and these complications make the management of this disease difficult. Rhabdomyolysis is one of the fatal complications; first, because the pathophysiological mechanism is not yet understood, and second, because rhabdomyolysis, itself, is usually complicated by acute renal failure. This complication makes the disease management difficult, especially in patients with SARS. Rhabdomyolysis during COVID-19 infection represents a significant challenge, given the few reported cases, and further research is required to develop a therapeutic consensus.

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The medical care of patients with hematological malignancies who develop coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a major challenge during the current pandemic. We herein describe a patient in the blast phase of chronic myeloid leukemia who was hospitalized for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. The patient was successfully treated with tocilizumab, and intubation was avoided. The severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection is mostly related to a severe acute respiratory distress syndrome that develops secondary to cytokine release syndrome, and interleukin 6 is the main cytokine involved in cytokine release syndrome. Very few reports have described the use of tocilizumab in patients with hematologic malignancies who develop SARS-CoV-2 infection, although a few cases of patients with multiple myeloma have been reported. To our knowledge, however, this is the first report of a SARS-CoV-2–infected patient in the blast phase of chronic myeloid leukemia who had a favorable response to treatment with tocilizumab. The management of patients with hematological malignancies who become infected with SARS-CoV-2 is a major challenge for practitioners, necessitating more specific research in this direction.

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