Burkitt cell leukemia with myelodysplasia as a presentation of HIV infection

Hematologic manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection include cytopenias, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, and myelodysplasia. Acute lymphocytic leukemia has rarely been reported in association with HIV infection. We describe a patient who presented with Burkitt cell leukemia and myelodysplasia as her initial manifestation of HIV infection. The dysplastic features included circulating asymmetric binucleated red blood cells as well as pseudo Pelger-Huet cells. To the best of our knowledge, this has not been previously reported.