Adult-onset Still’s disease as the first manifestation of acute myeloid leukemia: a case report

The association between adult-onset Still’s disease (AOSD) and malignancy has previously been observed. However, only a limited number of cases described a combination of AOSD and leukemia, none of which reported AOSD-related symptoms as the first manifestation of acute myeloid leukemia (AML). This presentation might represent a paraneoplastic syndrome or leukemic arthritis mimicking AOSD. CASE PRESENTATION: Here the authors report a case of a 23-year-old female who fulfilled the Yamaguchi criteria for an AOSD diagnosis. She presented with complaints of polyarthritis, sore throat, and daily fever spikes with the appearance of a nonpruritic maculopapular salmon-colored rash. Her laboratory work showed marked pancytopenia, which led to a bone marrow examination and an AML diagnosis. The patient started receiving chemotherapy with considerable improvement in the AOSD-related symptoms. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Patients with underlying malignancies could present with systemic features compatible with AOSD, which necessitates excluding malignancy in any patient with this presentation, specifically in light of some warning signs like pancytopenia. CONCLUSION: This case interprets a rare association between AOSD and AML. In addition, it highlights how crucial it is to be aware of the signs that should warn the clinician of a possible underlying malignancy in any patient presenting with AOSD-related symptoms.