Case-report: EBV driven lymphoproliferative disorder associated with Ruxolitinib

Róbert Pálmason; Ola Lindén; Johan Richter

doi:10.1186/s12878-015-0029-1

Case-report: EBV driven lymphoproliferative disorder associated with Ruxolitinib

BMC Hematol. 2015 Jul 11:15:10. doi: 10.1186/s12878-015-0029-1. eCollection 2015.

Authors

Róbert Pálmason¹, Ola Lindén², Johan Richter¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Hematology and vascular disorders, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden ; Lund University, Lund, Sweden.
² Department of Oncology, Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden ; Lund University, Lund, Sweden.

Abstract

Background: Ruxolitinib, a novel inhibitor of Janus kinases 1 and 2, was recently approved for the treatment of myelofibrosis but, recently, attention has been drawn to potential side effects and especially opportunistic infections and virus reactivations. EBV reactivation has not previously been reported to occur in association with Ruxolitinib.

Case presentation: We report a case of a 57 year old female with post-polycythemic myelofibrosis who was treated with Ruxolitinib. Approximately 9 weeks later she presented with a rapidly fatal, suspected EBV driven lymphoproliferative disorder in the CNS.

Conclusions: Our report further underlines that patients treated with Ruxolitinib should be monitored closely for reactivations of opportunistic pathogens and viral infections.

Keywords: EBV; Lymphoma; Lymphoproliferative disorder; Ruxolitinib; Side-effects.

Publication types

Case Reports