Congenital leukemia diagnosed on day one of life - A rare entity: Case report

Congenital leukemia (CL) is a very rare disorder. Congenital leukemia is very uncommon myelo-proliferative disorder and may be associated with Down syndrome. Congenital Leukemia constitutes approximately 1% of all pediatric leukemias. Though rare, congenital leukemia (CL) is a condition readily recognized by pathologist, hemato-pathologists and pediatricians. Diagnosis can be made by the presence of leukemic cells in peripheral smear and bone marrow. Some cases of congenital leukemias have been reported with skin involvement presenting as reddish pink, light brown or purple papules or nodules and purpura. Congenital leukemia is a rare disorder, but it’s a well-documented disease in which a disease process is detected at birth or very shortly within few days of birth. An estimated 160 to 190 reports of congenital leukemia has appeared in the literature. Most of the cases of CL diagnosed so far by various pathologists and hematopathologist belong to non-lymphoblastic lineage or myeloid lineage. Generally pediatric hematological malignancies are of lymphoid lineage. I have presented here a rare case of congenital leukemia of myeloid lineage which was diagnosed on day one in a low birth weight baby, born to non-consanguineous parents.