Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus-associated Castleman's disease with POEMS syndrome

The pathogenic link between POEMS (polyneuropathy, organomegaly, endocrinop athy, M protein, skin changes, and various other clinical signs) syndrome a nd Castleman's disease is unclear. Roles for M protein in POEMS syndrome an d cytokines in systemic manifestations of multicentric Castleman's disease have been suggested. Recently, pathogenic roles of cytokines in POEMS syndr ome and Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus (KSHV) in Castleman's disea se have been reported. We report on a patient with KSHV-associated Castlema n's disease with POEMS syndrome, and suggest a possible role of KSHV in ini tiating and linking these two diseases. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Mu scle Nerve 23: 436-439, 2000.