Castleman Disease In Children: Diagnosis and Treatment

Background: We describe the experiences in diagnosis and results of treatment in pediatric Castleman disease. Method: Serial case reports. Result: From 2016 to 2019, we had 7 cases of pediatric Castleman disease: 3 boys and 4 girl. The median age at diagnosis was 147 months (121-173 months). Clinical manifestations were found in five cases. They were all unicentric Castleman disease (6 abdominal mass, one left infraclavicular mass). All patients were operated with postoperative period uneventful. The median time of postoperative follow up was 22.7 months (11-53 months) with no signs of relapse. Conclusions: Pediatric Castleman disease is a rare benign lymph node hyperplasia, it can be localised or disseminated. Operation is the treatment of choice for localised Castleman disease.

Dysphagia and Dysphonia, a Pairing of Symptoms Caused by an Unusual Pair of Diseases: Castleman’s Disease and Myasthenia Gravis

Objectives: To describe a case of coincident Castleman’s disease and myasthenia gravis that initially presented as rapidly progressive dysphagia and dysphonia and to review the unique pathophysiology of these two uncommon diagnoses. Methods: Case report and literature review. Results: Castleman’s disease, angiofollicular or giant lymph node hyperplasia, is a rare benign lymphoid proliferation. Traditionally, the disease is classified based on histologic and clinical characteristics. Fewer than 10 cases with concurrent myasthenia gravis have been reported. Myasthenia gravis and thymic epithelial tumors are both associated with acetylcholine receptor antibody. While patients with isolated Castleman’s disease are usually asymptomatic, those who have concurrent myasthenia gravis and undergo surgical treatment are at increased risk of postoperative myasthenic crisis. Both pre- and postoperative plasmapheresis are suggested to improve muscle strength and prevent severe postoperative complications. Conclusions: In the setting of multiple cranial neuropathies including velopalatal insufficiency and bilateral ptosis it is important to consider myasthenia gravis. Castleman’s disease occurs rarely in conjunction with myasthenia gravis but may increase the risk of myasthenic crisis.

Mesenteric Castleman’s Disease: A Rare Cause of Mesenteric Masses: A Case Report and Literature Review

Castleman’s disease, also known as angiofollicular lymph node hyperplasia or giant lymph node hyperplasia, is a rare benign B-cell lymphoproliferative disorder of unknown etiology. We report a case of a 23-year old woman with mesenteric Castleman’s disease of plasma cell variant presented as a palpable mass in the left iliac fossa.

Variant of plasmablastic microlymphoma in Castleman disease: a case report and review of the literature

Castleman disease (CD) is a rare lymphoproliferative disorder also known as angiofollicular lymph node hyperplasia or giant lymph node hyperplasia. CD can be unicentric CD (UCD) or multicentric CD (MCD). MCD affects more than one group of lymph nodes and/or lymphoid tissues and it is frequently associated with HIV and human herpes virus 8 (HHV-8) infections and, in contrast with UCD, it often results in systemic symptoms, such as fever, fatigue, anemia, inflammatory syndrome. HHV- 8-associated MCD recognizes HHV-8 as an etiopathogenetic agent and occurs generally in HIV-positive subjects. Our report describes an HHV-8 positive Castleman disease with plasmablastic microlymphoma occurring in a 51-year-old HIV seronegative woman, with a previous history of HBV infection and Kaposi’s sarcoma, who presented elevated procalcitonin levels during the acute phase of CD.