Morphology Monday | Case MM251020
A middle aged traveller presented with mild, recurring fevers and general malaise several weeks and a slightly reduced platelet count. Blood films were made to assess the cause.
MM251013: Acute promyelocytic leukaemia (APML)
The blood film shows a genuine thrombocytopaenia, with a leukocytosis comprising predominantly of promyelocytes with Auer rods. The cells have immature nucleoli, abundant cytoplasmic granulation and approximately 25%% of the cells are bilobed. These are consistent with acute promyelocytic leukaemia.
Morphology Monday | Case MM251013
This week’s Morphology Monday case is from a 57 year old who presented to the emergency department.
MM251006: Lymphoproliferative disorder (?PLL)
The findings are in keeping with a lymphoproliferative disorder (LPD). Given the predominance of prolymphocytes, the picture is suggestive of Prolymphocytic Leukaemia (PLL). However, this would require confirmation by flow cytometry to establish lineage and clonality.
Morphology Monday | Case MM251006
This week’s case comes from a 62-year-old female whose sample was flagged by the analyser, but interestingly, no differential count was produced. The WBC scattergram showed an abnormal grey plot, prompting a manual film review.
MM250915: Renal impairment / IDA
The case underlines how multiple comorbidities can converge to produce complex red cell morphology.
Morphology Monday | Case MM250929
This week’s case comes from a patient with a complex clinical background. The patient presented with anaemia and a raised platelet count, alongside signs of systemic illness.
MM250915: Haemoglobin H disease
The blood film, stained with a supravital stain, revealed distinctive “golf ball” inclusions, blue precipitates within red cells.
Morphology Monday | Case MM250915
This week’s case comes from a 35-year-old patient who presented with fatigue, mild shortness of breath and intermittent anaemia
MM250908: P. ovale
The overall findings were consistent with Plasmodium ovale infection, one of the less common species of malaria. It is typically associated with relapsing infections due to dormant liver hypnozoites and is often distinguished by oval-shaped infected red cells with fimbriated edges.