Just Another Pelvic Mass?

Objectives: To describe the case of a patient presenting with weight loss and a pelvic mass. Materials and methods: We performed an advanced search in MEDLINE using the key words "wasting syndrome", "actinomycosis" and "pelvic mass". Results: A 63-year-old woman had a well-delimited and tender pelvic mass and was found to be anaemic. Before scans were performed, clinicians considered malignancy and other diagnoses. Conclusion: Actinomycosis is a chronic infection that usually affects the abdomen. Because of the lack of specificity of clinical and radiological findings, a multidisciplinary approach is the keypoint for making an accurate diagnosis.

Lymphadenopathy after Initiating HAART in an HIV-positive Patient with Kaposi's Sarcoma: a Case of Multicentric Castleman's Disease

We present the case of a 33-year-old lady who was diagnosed with disseminated Kaposi’s sarcoma and HIV infection. The patient improved on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), however, nine days into treatment, she became febrile and dyspnoeic and developed tender cervical and axillary lymphadenopathy. Despite treatment for suspected sepsis and immune reconstitution, she died in intensive care. Lymph node biopsies revealed coexistent Castleman’s disease and Kaposi’s sarcoma. Initiation of HAART can be rarely associated with unmasking and rapid progression of Castleman’s disease, a phenomenon called immune reconstitution. Urgent investigation and treatment with agents such as steroids and cytotoxic drugs can be life-saving.