Leukemia cutis in a patient with acute monocytic leukemia presenting as unique facial erythema

A 67-year-old woman was referred to our department with a 1-month history of facial exanthemas. She had been diagnosed as having acute monocytic leukemia (French-American-British classification, M5b) based on the histological findings of bone marrow. Physical examination revealed diffuse edematous erythema on her cheeks, eyelids and glabella with scattered reddish papules. Histological examination demonstrated dense infiltration of atypical mononuclear cells in the dermis. Specific cutaneous lesions could occur in acute monocytic leukemia more frequently than in other types of leukemia, but rarely show symmetrical edematous erythema limited to the face.