- Rezaei SJ, Eid E, Tang JY, Kurian AW, Kwong BY, Linos E. Incidence of Nonkeratinocyte Skin Cancer After Breast Cancer Radiation Therapy. JAMA Netw Open. 2024;7(3):e241632. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.1632
Breast cancer is a common disease and is often accompanied by other concomitant or secondary diseases. The chemotherapy, radiation or surgery that has been performed often plays a significant role here. A recent study investigated whether breast cancer patients also have an increased risk of skin cancer after treatment for breast cancer.
To do this, data from over 875,000 patients over a period of about 20 years was evaluated. Those who developed skin cancer after treatment for breast cancer were included in the study (DOI:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.1632).
Cancerous skin changes were detected in about 3,800 patients (over 99% of the participants were female) after completion of breast cancer treatment. These were mainly malignant melanomas, Merkel cell carcinomas, and haemangiosarcomas.
The study authors analysed whether certain breast cancer treatment methods were associated with a relevant change in the risk of skin cancer. The result: in particular, those whose breasts or torsos were irradiated had a significantly increased risk of malignancy; it was 57% higher than in the general population.
In particular, malignant melanoma and haemangiosarcoma occurred significantly more frequently after radiation. Radiation was found to correlate with a higher risk of skin cancer than chemotherapy or surgical treatment.
The data suggest that female patients who have or have had breast cancer and have been treated accordingly may have an increased risk of developing malignant skin diseases. This appears to be particularly true for people who have undergone radiation therapy. Treating physicians should use these findings and monitor and follow up with patients accordingly.