Chronic myelocytic leukemia in a juvenile rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta)

Myeloid neoplasia has been studied extensively in human beings but has not been reported in macaques. A 2-year-old female rhesus macaque that was experimentally exposed to lead as a neonate, was noted to have immature circulating myelocytic cells, including 1% blasts, and normocytic normochromic anemia on a blood sample obtained for monthly health monitoring. The animal was treated with hydroxyurea, blood transfusion, and recombinant human erythropoietin to reduce the leukocytosis and correct the anemia. The disease had a relatively indolent course for 3 months, when it progressed to blast crisis. After the onset of blast crisis, the animal was euthanized because of bleeding problems, anemia, and a progressive decline in her health. The animal was negative by serology, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays, and/or culture for simian retrovirus (SRV), simian T-lymphotropic virus type I (STLV-I), and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV). PCR assay for the bcr-ABL chromosomal translocation using primers made for the human gene was negative. Serology for Epstein-Barr virus (EBV)-like viruses was positive for IgG directed against the viral nucleocapsid antigen, but epidemiologic factors make it unlikely that the leukemia was associated with EBV-induced viral transformation. Lead exposure has been associated with neoplasia in human beings, and the possible role of neonatal lead exposure in hematologic neoplasias deserves further scrutiny.