Role of Epstein-Barr virus DNA load monitoring in prevention and early detection of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease.

Posttransplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) is a severe and life-threatening complication after stem cell or solid-organ transplantation, virtually always associated with presence of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in the proliferating cells. PTLD is probably caused by the iatrogenically impaired T-cell response allowing outgrowth of EBV-positive B-cells. Quantitative EBV DNA load monitoring is a minimally invasive technique increasingly recognized as a valuable tool in posttransplant patient management.