Aleukemic leukemia cutis presenting as benign-appearing exanthema

Aleukemic leukemia cutis is a rare condition characterized by the infiltrat ion of the skin by leukemic cells before their appearance in the peripheral blood or bone marrow. We report here a 62-year-old seemingly healthy patie nt who presented with disseminated erythematous maculae, A skin biopsy show ed leukemia cutis of monocytic type. No involvement of bone marrow or perip heral blood was found. The patient developed acute monocytic leukemia 7 mon ths later. We present this case to illustrate how leukemia cutis can masque rade as a clinically benign-appearing cutaneous eruption without leukemic c hanges in blood or bone marrow. To confirm the diagnosis of aleukemic leuke mia cutis, immunohistochemistry of the skin lesions as well as a complete s taging procedure is necessary.