Blastic Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cell Neoplasm: A Case Report

Blastic plasmacytoid dendritic cell neoplasm (BPDCN) is an uncommon hematological tumor originating from the precursor of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) with a persistent and progressive course of illness. Despite being an aggressive disease BPDCN has an initial indolent course manifested as skin lesions. Alongside or following the skin lesion, the extra-cutaneous manifestation develops and includes lymphadenopathy, splenomegaly, and hepatomegaly. The BPDCN diagnosis is mainly based on the immunophenotype. Herein, we report the case of a 72-year-old male patient who presented with a history of left anterior chest wall painless skin lesions. Histology of skin biopsy of the left chest skin lesion showed diffuse dermal infiltration by monomorphic medium-sized blastic cells positive for cluster of differentiation (CD)4, CD45, CD7, CD56, CD43, CD123, T-cell leukemia-1 (TCL1), and B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 2 protein (BCL2). Given the rarity of the disease, standard chemotherapy regimens used in treating different leukemias and lymphomas have been adapted to treat BPDCN.