Human T-cell leukemia virus-associated malignancy

• ATL is a peripheral T-cell malignancy induced by the human retrovirus HTLV-1.
• Clinical classifications of ATL include acute, lymphoma, smoldering, and chronic.
• Current therapy recommendations improve patient survival and depend on ATL subtype.
• Novel and innovative approaches are needed to advance ATL treatment options.

Human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1) is a tumorigenic delta retrovirus and the causative infectious agent of a non-Hodgkin's peripheral T-cell malignancy called adult T-cell leukemia/lymphoma (ATL). ATL develops in approximately 5% of infected individuals after a significant clinical latency period of several decades. Clinical classifications of ATL include smoldering, chronic, lymphoma, and acute subtypes, with varying median survival ranges of a few months to several years. Depending on the ATL subtype and disease symptoms, treatment options include ‘watchful waiting’, chemotherapy, antiviral therapy, allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloHSCT), and targeted therapies. Herein we review the characteristics and development of ATL, as well as current and future treatment options and perspectives.