The authors describe a female patient suffering from hairy-cell leukaemia. Already at the onset of the disease, apart from marked splenomegaly, sonography revealed marked retroperitoneal lymphadenopathy. During the subsequent course skin changes developed such as vasculitis and leukaemic infiltrates of the cornea on both eyes. The patient was successfully treated with 2-chlorodeoxyadenosine (2-CdA, Leustatin).