HERPES VIRUS-RELATED LYMPHOPROLIFERATIVE DISORDERS FOLLOWING ALLOGENEIC BONE-MARROW TRANSPLANTATION - CLINICAL AND BIOLOGICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF 6 CASES

The present paper describes six cases of lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD) occurring after bone marrow transplantation. Treatments were in effective and disease was rapidly fatal in all patients, although immu notyping of cells in blood, bone marrow or cerebrospinal fluid was hel pful to establish the diagnosis of LPD. Monoclonality was demonstrated in the 4 cases which it was possible to analyse. Herpes virus genome was present in tumoral cells of 4 in 4 cases tested for EBV, one in 3 cases tested for CMV, one in 3 cases tested for HHV6 and 3 in 3 cases tested for HSV. Patients developing LPD should benefit from earlier di agnosis and new therapeutic approaches such as donor lymphocyte infusi ons, while further studies are necessary to elucidate the role of Herp es viruses in the pathogenesis of LPD.