Refusal of treatment for acute leukemia in pregnancy: a case report

Abstract

IntroductionAcute leukemia is rare in pregnancy. The importance of promptly diagnosing and treating this disease in pregnancy stems from its life-threatening potential, both to the mother and fetus.Case presentationWe report a case of relapse of acute myeloid leukemia at 23 weeks of pregnancy in a 24-year-old Albanian woman. Our patient categorically refused chemotherapy treatment, and in her 35th week of gestation, severe hemorrhagic diathesis rapidly developed. The manifestation and course of this life-threatening complication posed therapeutic challenges for the attending medical team.ConclusionBased both on our experience and the results of other gynecological studies, there exists a strong indication that the earlier a patient’s chemotherapy treatment begins, the better the maternal outcome. We support chemotherapy for patients who are pregnant presenting with such illness. The present case report testifies that refusal of chemotherapy by such patients is a high-risk decision.

Leukemia-induced Gingival Overgrowth as an Early Manifestation in Pregnancy: A Case Report

“…In a recent research performed by Chelghoum et al in 2005 on acute leukemia in pregnant women, it was confirmed that 84% of patients had AML and 16% had ALL, with 76% of patients diagnosed during the second or third trimesters. 4 Gingival enlargement represents a 5% frequency as the initial presenting complication of AML. 12 Figure 6.…”

“…3 Most leukemias diagnosed during pregnancy are acute. 4 It is not surprising that in some patients the management of acute leukemia will be complicated by a coexis-M tent pregnancy. However, the association of leukemia and pregnancy is uncommon.…”