[Autoimmune thrombocytopenia following syngeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation].

A 35-year-old man with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL) (follicular small cleaved, B cell, stage IVB) received double myeloablative chemotherapy with syngeneic peripheral blood stem cell transplantation (PBSCT). Although platelet recovery was delayed until day 29 after the second transplantation, thereafter trilineage hematopoietic reconstitution was achieved. The evaluation after PBSCT did not detect any residual tumor. The patient was in good health until day 138, when his platelet count suddenly began falling; on day 150, it had fallen to 1.5 x 10(4)/microliter, and the patient was re-admitted for treatment. The bone marrow was normocellular with a normal count and megakaryocyte structure. Other examinations, including serological tests and computed tomography of the neck, chest, abdomen, and retroperitoneum, did not indicate a recurrence of NHL or reveal the cause of thrombocytopenia. The patient's platelet-associated IgG (PAIgG) level was at 70.9 ng/10(7) platelets (normal range: 9-25 ng/10(7) platelets); a diagnosis of thrombocytopenia due to an autoimmune mechanism such as idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP) was made. Prednisolone therapy increased the platelet count and reduced the PAIgG level. Thrombocytopenia with an ITP-like mechanism rarely occurs more than 100 days after autologous or syngeneic stem cell transplantation, and should be taken into consideration as a late complication of PBSCT.