ABSTRACT

HTLV-I is the first retrovirus directly associated with human malignancy. HTLV-I is endemic in the Caribbean, Japan, parts of Africa, the Middle East and South America. This enveloped double-stranded RNA virus is transmitted by routes similar to HIV, including untested blood/ blood product transfusions, sexual contact, intravenous drug abuse, and from mother to child in a vertical transmission. HTLV infection rarely occurs outside of the above sites and very few studies are available globally. Although the retrovirus identified as being associated with chicken sarcoma was described by Rous (1908), the first human retrovirus was not isolated until 1978 from cutaneous T-cell lymphoma in black Americans. Endemicity of the disease in the Caribbean was discovered in 1982 after adult T-cell leukemia (ATL) was found in some London patients, all of Caribbean origin. To date, there is still a lack of studies on the role of viruses in diseases such as inflammatory disorders, arthritis, Sjogren's syndrome, and infectious dermatitis. In Saint Vincent, there were no documented studies that reflected the prevalence and expression of the virus although we did report some cases of HIV-positive HTLV-I ATL. This article discusses the diagnosis and management of a 55-year-old female with an atypical presentation of adult T-cell lymphoma, and we conducted a literature review to determine the prevalence and common presentations of ATL.