Renal Leukemic Infiltration Overlapping Acute Focal Bacterial Nephritis during Myelodysplastic Syndrome: An Autopsy Case Report

Abstract

Renal leukemic infiltration is uncommon in myeloid neoplasms, including myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). A 76-year-old male patient was admitted to our hospital with complaints of fever and dyspnea. He was diagnosed with MDS with multilineage dysplasia and acute focal bacterial nephritis (AFBN) based on clinical, laboratory, and radiological investigations. Antibiotic treatment temporarily improved his condition, but the radiological image of AFBN remained. His condition gradually deteriorated into multiple organ failure, and he unfortunately died on the 31st day of hospitalization. Autopsy findings revealed significantly increased p53-positive blasts in the bone marrow and renal parenchyma overlapping AFBN, suggesting leukemic transformation and renal infiltration. This case emphasizes the need to review the diagnosis when antibiotic treatment is ineffective in MDS patients with AFBN.

Keywords

• myelodysplastic syndrome
• acute myeloid leukemia
• acute focal bacterial nephritis
• renal leukemic infiltration
• wedge-shaped parenchyma