Sweet syndrome-like neutrophilic infiltrate as initial presentation of acute myelogenous leukemia.

Sweet syndrome (SS) is a neutrophilic dermatosis that may be associated with malignancies, especially hematological. We describe the case of a 53-year-old woman with a clinical presentation suggestive of SS, accompanied by pancytopenia and a hypercellular marrow with signs of myelodysplasia. The histopathological findings were characterized as an SS-like cutaneous neutrophilic infiltrate with atypical myeloid cells, myeloperoxidase, and BCR-ABL+, which were absent in peripheral blood and bone marrow aspirate. The patient was treated with systemic corticosteroids with resolution of symptoms and relapse 3 months later when we tried drug withdrawal. Eight months later, the patient was admitted to hematology for a mature acute myelogenous leukemia with an FLT3 mutation. The patient successfully underwent medullar allotransplant and is now asymptomatic (5-month follow-up). This case describes a patient with an acute myelogenous leukemia presenting initially with heralding SS-like cutaneous neutrophilic infiltrate with atypical BCR-ABL+ myeloid cells, as a form of aleukemia cutis. Early recognition of this so-called aleukemic leukemia cutis may allow clinicians to intervene earlier, initiating effective treatment.