Visceral Kaposi's Sarcoma Related to Human Herpesvirus-8 in Liver Transplant Recipient: Case Report and Literature Review

Background. Kaposi's sarcoma (KS) in transplant recipients is about 400 to 500 times rate in the general population. It is strongly associated to Human herpesvirus-8 (HHV-8) infection which has been found in 95% of KS lesions. The optimal approach to managing posttransplantation KS is to reduce or discontinue immunosuppressive therapy but this strategy carries a risk of the acute rejection of the graft. Recently, the use of an mTOR inhibitor has added new opportunities for KS treatment and prevention. Case Report. We report a case of 24 years-old Turkish woman with visceral HHV-8-associated Kaposi's sarcoma after orthotopic liver transplantation. Conclusion. Posttransplantation KS is considered an experimental model of virus induced tumor suggesting the usefulness of HHV-8 screening in transplant recipient and donor. Therapeutic approaches are complex and require a multidisciplinary team.