B-cell chronic lymphocytic leukemia associated with high serum IGE levels and pruriginous skin lesions: successful therapy with IFN-alpha 2b after failure on IFN-gamma.

Background: Chronic lymphocytic leukemia of the B-cell type (B-CLL) associated with highly elevated serum IgE levels and skin involvement has rarely been observed. Furthermore, not much is known about therapeutic strategies in such diseases.

Objective: We describe a 56-year-old male patient with a 5-year history of chronic and relapsing pruritic skin lesions as well as recurrent Staphylococcus aureus infections of the skin.