Clinical and ultrastructural study of Burkitt-like leukaemia

Six patients, two with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (A.L.L.) and four with lymphosarcoma with early transformation into A.L.L., have been studied. All blast-cells demonstrated with cytological, cytochemical and ultrastructural features of Burkitt's tumour. The clinical evolution was fulminant and there was no remission of long duration despite intensive chemotherapy. The cytoplasm of the blast-cells displayed a great number of lipid droplets. The level of the anticapsid Epstein-Barr virus antibodies was high in the case investigated.