Lymphoid proliferation and lymphoma associated with human retroviruses (HTLV and HIV).

There are rapidly increasing opportunities for dermatologists to see patients suffering from retrovirus infections. The HTLV-I was the first class of human oncogenic retrovirus that was found in cultured cells of a patient with skin manifestations similar or identical to those of CTCL (MF). It was soon recognized as the agent causing ATLL. The skin manifestations, histopathology, and immunophenotypes of ATLL share many similarities with MF and SS. Both HTLV-I and HIV-I (HTLV-III) cause immunodeficiency with an increased susceptibility to opportunistic infections. Persistent generalized lymphadenopathies are the initial manifestations of most of the HIV infections. The incidence of lymphoid malignancies is expected to become much higher as the life span of AIDS patients is prolonged. They can have both B-cell and T-cell non-Hodgkin lymphomas, although the incidence of the latter (B-cell lymphoma) is still much higher than that of the former. All human retroviruses are transmitted in similar ways.