Zipursky A, Rose T, Skidmore M, Thorner P, Doyle J
Department of Pediatrics, The Hospital for Sick Children, and the University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Pediatr Hematol Oncol. 1996 Jan-Feb;13(1):81-7. doi: 10.3109/08880019609033374.
Four newborn infants with Down syndrome and manifestations of neonatal leukemia are described. One of the four was stillborn, two died shortly after birth, and a fourth survived and all evidence of leukemia disappeared in the first month of life. Three of the four cases had hydrops fetalis, and a fourth was a macerated stillborn. Nine other similar reported cases are reviewed. We conclude that neonatal leukemia in Down syndrome is a form of leukemia that is usually transient, with spontaneous recovery, but may be fatal at or around the time of birth with manifestations of hydrops fetalis, hepatosplenomegaly, and/or progressive liver disease.
