Myeloid sarcoma causing airway obstruction

Myeloid sarcoma is an extramedullary collection of blasts of the myeloid series that partially or totally effaces the architecture of the tissue in which it is found. These tumors have been described in many sites of the body, but the skin, lymph nodes, gastrointestinal tract, bone, soft tissue, and testes are most common. They can arise in a patient following the diagnosis of acute myeloid leukemia, but they may also be precursors of leukemia and should be considered diagnostic for acute myeloid leukemia. The differential diagnosis of this neoplasm includes malignant lymphoma, with which it is often mistaken, leading to diagnostic and therapeutic delays. We present the case of an 84-year-old African American man with a history of renal disease secondary to hypertension and coronary artery disease without any prior history of malignancies who presented with airway obstruction. He was diagnosed with a myeloid sarcoma of the mediastinum compressing his trachea.