Leukemia cutis – epidemiology, clinical presentation, and differential diagnoses

Leukemia cutis is an extramedullary manifestation of leukemia. The frequency and age distribution depend on the leukemia subtype. The clinical and morphological findings have a wide range of cutaneous manifestations and may present with nodular lesions and plaques. Rare manifestations include erythematous macules, blisters and ulcers which can each occur alone or in combination. Apart from solitary or grouped lesions, leukemia cutis may also present with an erythematous rash in a polymorphic clinical pattern. Consequently, leukemia cutis has to be distinguished from numerous differential diagnoses, i. e. cutaneous metastases of visceral malignancies, lymphoma, drug eruptions, viral infections, syphilis, ulcers of various origins, and blistering diseases. In the oral mucosa, gingival hyperplasia is the main differential diagnosis. The knowledge of the clinical morphology is of tremendously importance in cases in which leukemia was not yet known.