Alveolar Granulocytic Sarcoma of the Mandible in a Patient with HIV

Background: Granulocytic sarcoma (chloroma) occurs primarily in patients with acute myelogenous leukemia although it can also appear in connection with other myeloproliferative disorders. Case Report: We present the case of a 52-year-old human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive female patient with a CD4+ count of 321 cells/mu l, who developed an alveolar granulocytic sarcoma of the mandible. Pathological analysis of the tumor mass showed an infiltrate of immature cells which were positive for CD13, CD33, CD15, CD11b, and CD64, and negative for CD34, CD117, and HLA-DR. The patient achieved complete remission following a 1-week course of chemotherapy, however, 7 months later she developed a second granulocytic sarcoma in the left soleus muscle. The absolute CD4+ count had now reduced to 3 cells/mu l with an inversion in the Th/Ts index (0.01), and she died of gram-negative sepsis 1 month later. Conclusions: Granulocytic sarcoma is extremely rare in patients with HIV. The case is discussed with reference to the literature.