Hematological findings in 10 cases of classic Kaposi's Sarcoma in Sardinia

Ten patients suffering from the Classical Kaposi's Sarcoma (CKS) were studied to show the possible existence of a subgroup of this illness in the Mediterranean, as hypothesized by other authors. For this reason, we analyzed the peripheral hematological and medullar picture together with the immunological, immunogenetic and cytogenetic profile of ten patients in Sardinia. The hematological picture did not show any characteristics peculiar of CKS either in the peripheral blood or in the bone marrow; however, the involvement of the T-lymphocyte system and the association of this kind of neoplasia with the HLA-DR5 antigen was confirmed. Finally, different kinds of non-specific cytogenetic alterations were found in far greater numbers than expected. No alterations affording a particular picture of Mediterranean KS were shown to exist even though diserythro and dismyelopoietic hematological pictures were present.