18 June 2026
: Case report 
Disseminated Tuberculosis Mimicking Metastatic Cancer During Ruxolitinib Therapy for Polycythemia Vera: A Case Report and Literature Review
Mistake in diagnosis, Rare disease
Yuga Ono BCDEF 1*, Koji Oka
D 2, Kenichi Ishikawa D 3, Hisaharu Shikata D 2, Masahiko Kaneko D 2
DOI: 10.12659/AJCR.952683
Am J Case Rep 2026; 27:e952683
Table 2 Literature review of previously reported cases of tuberculosis during ruxolitinib treatment in patients with MPNs.
| Reference | Age/Sex | Under-lying disease | Infection site | Type of Infection | IGRA before ruxolitinib | IGRA at TB diagnosis | Ruxolitinib discontinuation | Ruxolitinib Restart | Timing of infection after start of Ruxolitinib | Outcome | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lung | Lymph node | Others | ||||||||||
| Colomba, et al []10 | NA/M | PMF | + | + | - | Disseminated | NA | Positive | Yes | No | 2 mo | NA |
| Hopman, et al []11 | 62/M | PMF | + | + | - | Disseminated | NA | NA | Yes | YES | 7 mo | Improved |
| Chen, et al []12 | 82/M | PMF | + | − | - | Pulmonary | NA | NA | Yes | No | 2 mo | Improved |
| Keizer, et al []13 | 68/M | PMF | + | − | - | Disseminated | Not performed | NA | NA | No | 4 mo | Deceased |
| Keizer, et al []13 | 72/M | PMF | + | + | - | Disseminated | Not performed | NA | NA | No | NA | Deceased |
| Shamil, et al []14 | 78/F | PMF | + | + | - | Disseminated | NA | NA | Yes | NA | NA | Improved |
| Branco, et al []15 | 78/F | PMF | − | + | Bone | Disseminated | NA | Positive | No | No | 1 yr 9 mo | Improved |
| Abidi, et al []16 | 69/M | PMF | + | + | - | Disseminated | NA | Positive | Yes | Yes | 3 mo | Improved |
| Patil, et al []17 | 35/F | PMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | NA | NA | No | No | 10 mo | Improved |
| Tsukamoto, et al []18 | 73/M | PMF | + | − | - | Disseminated | Positive | NA | Yes | NA | 6 mo | Deceased |
| Pepeler, et al []19 | 52/F | PMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | NA | Negative | Yes | Yes | 8 mo | Improved |
| Lescuyer, et al []20 | 73/M | PMF | + | − | Brain | Disseminated | NA | Positive | Yes | NA | 6 mo | Deceased |
| Hirai, et al []21 | 80/M | PMF | + | − | Skin abscess, bone | Disseminated | Not performed | Positive | Yes | NA | 10 mo | Deceased |
| Peng, et al []22 | 41/M | PMF | + | + | - | Pulmonary | Not performed | Positive | Yes | Yes | 4 mo | Improved |
| Peng, et al []22 | 66/M | PMF | + | + | Neck abscess, psoas abscess | Disseminated | Not performed | Positive | No | No | 2 mo | Improved |
| Khalid, et al []23 | 78/F | PMF | + | + | - | Pulmonary | NA | Indeterminate | NA | NA | 3 yr 2 mo | Deceased |
| Khalid, et al []23 | 62/M | PMF | + | + | - | Pulmonary | NA | NA | Yes | Yes | NA | Improved |
| Khalid, et al []23 | 54/M | PMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | NA | NA | Yes | NA | 7 mo | Improved |
| Ogai, et al []24 | 71/M | PMF | + | − | - | Disseminated | NA | Equivocal | Yes | NA | 2 yr 6 mo | Deceased |
| Kasemchaiyanun, et al []25 | 56/F | PMF | + | + | - | Pulmonary | NA | NA | NA | NA | 10 mo | Improved |
| Tiwari, et al []26 | 48/M | PMF | + | − | - | Disseminated | NA | NA | Yes | Yes | 4 mo | Improved |
| Tiwari, et al []26 | 50/M | PMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | NA | NA | Yes | NA | 2 mo | Improved |
| Chen, et al []27 | 64/F | PMF | − | − | Psoas abscess | Extrapulmonary | NA | Positive | Yes | NA | 15 mo | Improved |
| Palandri, et al []28 | 65/F | PV→ SMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | Not performed | Negative | Yes | Yes | NA | Improved |
| Malkan, et al []29 | 64/M | PV→ SMF | − | − | Meninges | Extrapulmonary | NA | Positive | NA | NA | 4 mo | Deceased |
| Loutsou, et al []30 | 70/F | PV→ SMF | + | − | - | Disseminated | NA | Indeterminate | Yes | NA | NA | Improved |
| Santoro, et al []31 | 38/M | ET→ SMF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | NA | Positive | Yes | Yes | 2 mo | Improved |
| Kim, et al []32 | NA/NA | MF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | Negative | NA | NA | NA | 5 mo | Improved |
| Kim, et al []32 | NA/NA | MF | − | + | - | Extrapulmonary | Negative | NA | Yes | NA | 1 mth | Deceased |
| Sakiyama, et al []33 | 78/M | PV | − | − | Peritoneum | Extrapulmonary | NA | Negative | Yes | No | 28 mo | Improved |
| Gorospe, et al []34 | 59/M | PV | − | − | Pleura, peritoneum, bone | Disseminated | NA | NA | NA | NA | 17 mo | Improved |
| Current case | 71/F | PV | + | + | Pleura, peritoneum, bone | Disseminated | Not performed | Negative | No | No | 9 mo | Improved |
| N/A – Not available. | ||||||||||||