Adult T-Cell Leukemia After Deceased Donor Liver Transplantation for Acute Liver Failure: A Case Report

Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) causes adult T-cell leukemia (ATL); however, the mechanism of its development has yet to be uncovered. A few ATL cases have been reported in HTLV-1-positive recipients after living donor liver transplantation. A 57-year-old HTLV-1-positive Japanese male suffered acute liver failure due to hepatitis B infection. He was transferred to our department to undergo deceased donor liver transplantation (DDLT). Tacrolimus and mycophenolate mofetil were induced for immunosuppression. His clinical outcome was satisfactory. However, he visited his physician 3 years after DDLT reporting abdominal pain and fever. A computed tomography scan showed multiple lymph node enlargement. Lymph node biopsy and his blood sample led to a diagnosis of ATL. He was transferred to the Department of Hematology and Oncology and underwent chemotherapy. To our knowledge, this is the first report of ATL development after DDLT from an HTLV-1-positive recipient. As is the case with our previous report, the current patient had undergone liver transplant for acute liver failure. Unlike living donor liver transplantation, however, DDLT needs no hepatic growth factor for liver regeneration. This finding sheds light on the resolution of the mechanism for the development of ATL from the HTLV-1 carrier.