Incidental Detection of Hairy Cell Leukaemia with Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV) Related Lip Ulcer Mimicking Carcinoma

Hairy cell leukemia is a chronic lympho-proliferative disease. It is indolent but progressive in nature. It arises from B-cell lineage. We report an incidentally detected case of Hairy Cell Leukaemia (HCL) in a 55-year-old male patient with Herpes simplex virus (HSV) - related lip ulcer mimicking squamous cell carcinoma. Clinically the patient presented with lip ulceration without pain. He was found to have moderate hepatosplenomegaly and pancytopenia on general examination. Bone marrow aspiration and flow cytometric immunophenotyping revealed HCL. The oral lesion resolved after antiviral therapy. The intriguing possibility of a combined pathogenesis for the two disorders is considered, as HCL is known to be associated with immunosuppression, second malignancies and the production of cytokines promoting epithelial growth.