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The anti-CD20 monoclonal antibody rituximab (Rituxan) is a standard component of therapy for B-cell lymphoproliferative disease (LPD) and, increasingly, for patients with autoimmune cytopenias, hemolytic anemia, and connective tissue disorders, among other conditions. A well-recognized complication of rituximab therapy is viral reactivation, including that of hepatitis B virus, herpes simplex virus, cytomegalovirus, and varicella zoster virus. Recently, progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a rare and highly lethal demyelinating disorder resulting from reactivation of the JC polyoma virus, has also been reported post-rituximab.
To examine this association further, investigators retrospectively assessed records of 57 rituximab-tre…