Risk of basal cell carcinoma after Hodgkin's disease

Background: Basal cell cancer is a common skin cancer, yet studies of secon d tumors after Hodgkin's disease tend to exclude basal cell cancers as seco nd malignant tumors from analysis. Basal cell carcinomas (BCC) are possibly more common in immunosuppressed patients and were recently implicated as i ndicators of subsequent malignancies. Materials and Methods: Our database o f 1,120 patients with Hodgkin's disease (derived from the tumor registry) w as investigated for the occurrence of later BCCs. Kaplan-Meier curves were calculated. Results: A total of 9 cases of BCC were observed 0-20 years aft er the diagnosis of Hodgkin's disease, One case relapsed after excision. Th e probability of second BCC was 2.1% after 15 years of follow-up and 7.1% a fter 20 years. Statistically, the risk for second BCC was increased only in younger patients and with prolonged follow-up, but not in the total group of patients with Hodgkin's disease. Conclusion: BCC is not a major threat: for the survivors of Hodgkin's disease, but continued follow-up is necessar y.