Successful treatment of an acquired haemorrhagic diathesis due to factor Xdeficiency with chemotherapy

A 70-yr-old woman presented with a severe haemorrhagic diathesis due to an acquired factor X deficiency. A plasma infusion study showed that exogenous factor X was eliminated very effectively from the patient's circulation. A bone marrow biopsy was consistent with plasma cell dyscrasia. Neither an a bdominal fat biopsy nor the bone marrow biopsy confirmed an amyloidosis, al though clinically no other diagnosis seemed possible. Treatment with interm ittent chemotherapy, consisting of vincristine, cytoxan and prednisone, yie lded definite clinical and laboratory improvement.