Kaposi sarcoma is an oligoclonal HHV-8-driven vascular proliferation that was first described by a Viennese dermatologist Dr Moritz Kaposi. The disease has been seen in different clinical-epidemiological settings with a wide morphologic spectrum. We report a 52-year-old Caucasian man with HIV/AIDS and Kaposi sarcoma who presented with dyspnea and pleural effusion. He reported numerous tender subcutaneous nodules developing over the past few months on his chest, back and abdomen. An excisional biopsy of one of the nodules was performed. Touch preps revealed malignant cells in clusters. Microscopically, the neoplasm appeared undifferentiated with an epithelioid morphology, and involved the dermis and subcutaneous fat. Despite the medical history, Kaposi sarcoma was not considered foremost in the differential diagnosis. The malignant cells were positive for vimentin and negative for S100 protein, keratin AE1/3, CK7, CK20, napsin A, TTF-1 and synaptophysin. Additional stains revealed positivity for HHV-8, CD31 and D2-40, supporting the diagnosis of Kaposi sarcoma. Kaposi sarcoma has been well described with many variants that may cause diagnostic difficulty. An epithelioid variant has not been reported and consequently, may cause misinterpretation of an otherwise well-known entity that may become life threatening if appropriate treatment is not initiated in a timely manner.
Objectives
To compare the clinical significance of SF3B1/DNMT3A Comutations with SF3B1 or DNMT3A mutation alone in myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS).
Methods
We identified and compared 31 patients with only DNMT3A mutation, 48 patients with only SF3B1 mutation, and 16 patients with only SF3B1/DNMT3A comutations.
Results
SF3B1/DNMT3A comutations were found to be more common in MDS, whereas DNMT3A mutation alone was more common in CCUS. The patients with SF3B1/DNMT3A comutations were less likely to have poor cytogenetics than patients with DNMT3A mutation alone. Patients with SF3B1/DNMT3A comutations showed significantly longer median survival time and better overall survival than patients with DNMT3A mutation alone.
Conclusions
Patients with SF3B1/DNMT3A comutations appear to have better clinical outcomes than patients with isolated DNMT3A mutation. These findings suggest that the favorable prognosis of SF3B1 mutation in is not abrogated by the concurrent presence of a DNMT3A mutation.
Primary benign neurogenic neoplasms of the pleura are exceedingly rare. Neurofibromas rarely involve the pleura. A review of the literarture reveals only a single reported case of isolated pleural neurofibroma. Herein the authors describe another case of isolated primary pleural neurofibroma. A 39-year-old nonsmoker woman presented to the emergency room with complaints of progressively worsening chest pain of one month duration. A computed tomography of the chest revealed a crescent shaped, pleural based mass suspicious for a neurogenic tumor such as an intercostal schwannoma. A PET-CT skull base to midthigh failed to reveal any other masses or abnormalities. A surgical excision of the mass was performed due to the patient's intractable pain. The resected specimen consisted of an ovoid fragment of soft tissue with pale yellow, smooth and glistening cut surface. Microscopic examination revealed the tumor to be composed of spindle cells with wavy nuclei arranged haphazardly in loose collagenous and pale myxoid stroma with rare interspersed mast cells. The spindle cells were diffusely positive for S100 protein and SOX-10, and focally positive for neurofilament. In the absence of any other masses in the patient and no pertinent history, a diagnosis of primary pleural neurofibroma was made. This case emphasizes the need to consider neurofibroma in any spindle cell neoplasm of the pleura irrespective of age or singularity.
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