Disseminated pagetoid reticulosis: need for long-term follow-up

A 54-year-old woman had an erythematous plaque on the left index finger for 2 years. Histologically there was a dense infiltrate of atypical mononuclear cells in the epidermis that produced a pagetoid appearance. A diagnosis of localized pagetoid reticulosis was made. Three years after total removal of the finger lesion, erythematous plaques appeared on her left thigh, followed by the development of similar plaques on the right thigh and lower abdomen. Histologically these skin lesions had the same pagetoid appearance as the plaque on the finger. This suggested development of the disseminated type of pagetoid reticulosis, long after removal of the initial skin lesion.