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Pilar Iranzo, MD; Ingrid López, MD; Maria Teresa Robles, MD; José Manuel Mascaró, Jr, MD; Elías Campo, MD; Carmen Herrero, MD

Arch Dermatol. 2004;140:1496-1499.

Background  Bullous pemphigoid has developed in association with different types of malignant diseases, including a few cases of B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders. However, the paraneoplastic significance of this association is still controversial.

Observations  We describe a 39-year-old patient who presented with a bullous eruption and generalized lymphadenopathy. The results of histologic, immunofluorescence, and antigenic studies confirmed the diagnosis of bullous pemphigoid. The histopathologic and immunophenotypic features of a lymph node biopsy specimen were consistent with mantle cell lymphoma. There was total resolution of the mucocutaneous lesions when mantle cell lymphoma went into remission.

Conclusion  The age of the patient and the concomitant appearance and simultaneous remission of both diseases strongly suggest that bullous pemphigoid was a paraneoplastic phenomenon in the present case.

Author Affiliations: Departments of Dermatology (Drs Iranzo, López, Robles, Mascaró, and Herrero) and Pathology (Dr Campo), Hospital Clinic, Universitat de Barcelona, and Department of Dermatology, Hospital Comarcal Alt Penedés (Dr Robles), Barcelona, Spain.