POST TRANSPLANT LYMPHOPROLIFERATIVE DISORDERS

Course overview

POST-TRANSPLANT LYMPHOPROLIFERATIVE DISORDER (PTLD) IS A WELL-KNOWN, LIFE-THREATENING COMPLICATION OF ORGAN TRANSPLANTATION, PREDOMINANTLY OCCURRING AFTER SOLID ORGAN TRANSPLANTATION (SOT) AND HEMATOPOIETIC STEM CELL TRANSPLANTATION (HSCT). THE MAJORITY OF THE CASES OF PTLD ARE ASSOCIATED WITH EPSTEIN-BARR VIRUS (EBV) AND OCCUR WITHIN THE FIRST POSTTRANSPLANT YEAR. IN PLANNING FOR AND IN THE YEARS SUBSEQUENT TO A TRANSPLANT, IT IS ESSENTIAL TO CONSIDER THE TIMELINE AND TO CONSIDER WHETHER TRYING TO PREVENT CERTAIN COMPLICATIONS SUCH AS TRANSPLANT REJECTION VIA UTILIZATION OF IMMUNOSUPPRESSIVE AGENTS OUTWEIGHS THE POTENTIAL RISK OF INFECTIOUS COMPLICATIONS AND THE RISK OF PTLD. HIGH-DOSE IMMUNOSUPPRESSION IS ASSOCIATED WITH A HIGHER RISK OF PTLD. THE CLINICAL PRESENTATION OF PTLD CAN BE HIGHLY VARIABLE RANGING FROM LOCALIZED TO DISSEMINATED AND CAN IMITATE BENIGN CONDITIONS. CONSEQUENTLY, A HIGH DEGREE OF CLINICAL ATTENTION IS CRUCIAL FOR EARLY DIAGNOSIS AND PROMPT TREATMENT. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE EVALUATION AND MANAGEMENT OF POST-TRANSPLANT LYMPHOPROLIFERATIVE DISORDERS AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM MEMBERS IN COLLABORATING TO PROVIDE WELL-COORDINATED CARE AND ENHANCE PATIENT OUTCOMES.