Kaposi's Sarcoma - Description

Scientists know of four forms of Kaposi's sarcoma. One form, called classical KS, affects older men of Mediterranean or eastern European background. The disease appears as pink, purple, or brown patches on the lower legs. These patches can be painful and ugly, but they are usually not life-threatening.

A second form of KS is called African endemic KS. It affects boys and men of any ethnic background. Its earliest symptoms are similar to those of classical KS. The cancer soon spreads, however, to tissues under the skin, the bones, and the lymph system. The disease is difficult to treat and often causes death within a few years of diagnosis.

Iatrogenic (pronounced eye-a-truh-JE-nik) KS is a third form of the disease. An iatrogenic disorder is one that develops because a patient is being treated for some other disease. Iatrogenic KS usually occurs in patients who have had a liver or kidney transplant. It is able to develop because these patients have taken drugs to suppress (restrain) their immune systems. Iatrogenic KS tends to disappear when these patients stop taking the drugs.

The fourth form of KS is AIDS-related KS. This form of KS appeared among gay men who developed AIDS in the 1980s. AIDS-related KS tumors first appear on the skin. But the disease may then spread to the head, neck, back, mouth, stomach and intestines, lymph nodes, and lungs. In its advanced stages, AIDS-related KS is very difficult to cure and can often cause death.