Acute basophilic leukemia presenting with maculopapular rashes and a gastric ulcer: A case report

Acute basophilic leukemia (ABL) is a rare and poorly characterized form of leukemia. The case of a 65-year-old male who complained of dizziness, maculopapular skin lesions and melena is described in the current report. A gastroscopy was conducted and indicated a gastric antral ulcer. The diagnosis of ABL was determined due to characteristic cytomorphological features, the myeloid immunophenotype of the blast cells (identified to be positive for cluster of differentiation [CD]25 and CD123) in addition to the absence of the Philadelphia chromosome and a c-kit D816V mutation. The patient initially demonstrated clinical improvement as a result of chemotherapy, however, subsequently deteriorated. The gastric and skin manifestations of ABL may be associated with excessive histamine release from basophilic cells. Thus, the administration of H1- and H2-receptor antagonists, proton pump inhibitors and steroids is proposed in order to minimize these associated complications.