CASE REPORT article
Front. Oncol.
Sec. Hematologic Malignancies
Volume 15 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fonc.2025.1648711
Case Report: Transformation of Natural Killer-cell Large Granular Lymphocytic Leukemia (NK-LGLL) to Aggressive Natural Killer Cell Leukemia (ANKL)
Provisionally accepted
- Department of Lymphoma, Shandong Cancer Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, China
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Large Granular Lymphocytic Leukemia (LGLL) is a rare clonal proliferative disorder of cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) and natural killer (NK) cells, characterized by persistent expansion of large granular lymphocytes (LGLs) in peripheral blood for over six months. According to the 2022 World Health Organization (WHO) classification, LGLL is categorized into T-LGLL, NK-large granular lymphocytic leukemia (NK-LGLL). Aggressive natural killer cell leukemia (ANKL), as a Mature T-cell and NK-cell leukemia independent of LGLL, also has morphologic characteristics of large granular lymphocytes. This report describes a rare case of NK-LGLL transforming into ANKL. This case highlights the necessity of differential diagnosis in LGLL and suggests that proteasome inhibitors combined with immune checkpoint inhibitors may represent a promising therapeutic strategy for ANKL.
Keywords: NK-LGLL, ANKL, LGLL, Treatment, diagnosis
Received: 17 Jun 2025; Accepted: 14 Aug 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Lu, Xing and Li. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Wen Wang, Department of Lymphoma, Shandong Cancer Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, China
Lijie Xing, Department of Lymphoma, Shandong Cancer Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, China
Zengjun Li, Department of Lymphoma, Shandong Cancer Hospital, Shandong University, Jinan, China
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