ADULT T-CELL LEUKEMIA CLINICALLY MANIFESTED WITH ASCITES AND PLEURAL EFFUSION

A 62-year-old man with adult T cell leukemia (ATL) presented with comp laints of anorexia and abdominal fullness. Evaluation revealed ascites and pleural effusion, but no lymph node swelling, hepatosplenomegaly, or skin involvement. The diagnosis of ATL was made by the detection o f specific surface markers for T lymphocytes in pleural effusion and a scitic fluid, and by determination of human T cell leukemia virus type I (HTLV-I) proviral DNA integration in mononuclear cells of pleural e ffusion. This case was considered a rare type of ATL with infiltration of the pleura and peritoneum.