PHOTOSENSITIVE DRUG ERUPTION INDUCED BY FLUTAMIDE

We describe a 68-year-old man who showed a photosensitive drug eruptio n induced by flutamide. The minimal erythema dose with ultraviolet A l ight was reduced to 2 J/cm(2) under administration of flutamide, which recovered to over 16 J/cm(2) after cessation of the medication, witho ut changing the reactivity to ultraviolet B. The absorption spectrum o f flutamide was not altered after ultraviolet A irradiation, suggestin g that flutamide is photostable with regard to ultraviolet A. In addit ion, bovine serum albumin was not covalently photocoupled with flutami de under ultraviolet A. Thus, flutamide seems to have low potency to a ct as a photohapten, and it is likely that a non-photohaptenic mechani sm operates in this photosensitivity or its active metabolite may work as a photosensitizer.