COVID-19 Infection and Acute Myeloid Leukemia: A Likely Marriage?
Younus Al-Midfai1,2, Moshe Bengio3,4,5, Pallavi Aneja6
1Internal Medicine, HCA Healthcare Westside Hospital, Plantation, USA.
Cureus
|December 5, 2024
Summary
Early COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 19) complications were unknown. A patient developed Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) suspected to be caused by COVID-19, prompting a literature review on this potential link.
Area of Science:
- Hematology
- Infectious Diseases
- Oncology
Background:
- The long-term complications of COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 19) were not well understood in the early stages of the pandemic.
- Viral infections are known to trigger various health issues, including hematological malignancies in some cases.
Observation:
- A patient was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) in early 2021.
- This AML diagnosis was strongly suspected to be a secondary complication following a prior COVID-19 infection.
Findings:
- The observed association between COVID-19 and AML shares similarities with the known occurrence of Hodgkin Lymphoma post-Epstein Barr Virus infection.
- A qualitative literature review was conducted to explore potential biological pathways linking COVID-19 to the development of AML.
Implications:
- This research highlights a potential, previously unrecognized complication of COVID-19.
- Understanding the link between viral infections like COVID-19 and hematological cancers such as AML is crucial for patient management and future research.
- Further investigation is warranted to confirm the causal relationship and elucidate the underlying mechanisms.
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