Kaposi's sarcoma during immunosuppressive therapy for atopic dermatitis

Vandercam, Bernard [UCL] Lachapelle, Jean-Marie [UCL] Janssens, P. Tennstedt, Dominique [UCL] Lambert, Michel [UCL]

We describe an HIV-negative homosexual man who developed Kaposi's sarcoma (KS). He had CD4 lymphocytopenia during azathioprine and topical corticosteroid therapy for atopic dermatitits (AD). KS was observed after only 2 months of immunosuppressive therapy. No regression was observed despite discontinuation of immunosuppressive therapy and normalization of the CD4+ cell count. This patient appears to be the first case of KS associated with AD. Moreover, as our patient had been sexually inactive for 15 years, this case raises the questions about the latency and about the sexual transmission of a novel herpes-like virus (KHSHV) recently detected in all forms of KS.