Lesson of the month 1: A rash decision.

We describe the case of a patient with anaplastic large cell lymphoma masquerading as a lower leg cellulitis. The patient had failed to respond to intravenous antibiotics and a skin biopsy confirmed her diagnosis. She received radical radiotherapy to the lower leg but later developed shortness of breath and was identified to have pulmonary infiltration of the lymphoma. She died shortly afterwards from lobar pneumonia. This case highlights the importance of regularly reassessing patients with suspected cellulitis and considering alternative diagnoses in cases that fail to respond to treatment. PMID: 25824078 [PubMed - in process]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25824078?dopt=Abstract

Source: Clinical Medicine - April 1, 2015 Category: Journals (General) Authors: Sedgwick CL, Hall PE, Ratnarajah A, Natkunarajah J, Hogh L Tags: Clin Med Source Type: research