Systemic Sclerosis Associated with Rectal Cancer. Case Report and a Brief Review of the Literature

Autoimmune diseases may appear as paraneoplastic syndromes during the course of a neoplastic disease, the most common being dermatomyositis/ polymyositis. The association of systemic sclerosis and cancer is not clear. The case of a 56-year-old male with rectal cancer and systemic sclerosis where the coexistence of the two diseases was closely related, so that scleroderma was considered a paraneoplastic syndrome rather than a concomitant morbid condition, is presented. Paraneoplastic syndromes occur during the course of several neoplastic diseases and are most commonly seen with small cell lung cancer (1). Autoimmune disorders constitute a subgroup of paraneoplastic syndromes (2) and symptoms related to the autoimmune disease may precede the first symptoms or appear during the course of the neoplastic disease. The case of a man with rectal cancer and systemic sclerosis is presented. Case Report A 56-year-old male, who experienced rectal bleeding in 1999, was diagnosed with locally advanced adenocarcinoma of the rectum, underwent a left hemicolectomy with a permanent stoma and refused any further medical intervention. Three months after surgery, he noticed small skin lesions on his cheeks. These lesions were very small but kept increasing in size ( Figures 1A and B), making the skin thinner, hairless, and pink in colour with visible blood vessels (telangiectasias). The patient did not seek medical advice as these lesions were not causing any pain. Within a few months he developed sclerosis in the fingers. The course of the development of these changes was very slow. Five years after surgery, the patient experienced dyspnea which rapidly aggravated and he was examined at a district hospital. Chest X-rays and CT revealed four metastatic nodular lesions in each lung. There was an indication of diffuse interstitial infiltration on both lower lobes thus giving the picture of 'honeycomb lung'. The patient was then referred to St. Savvas Hospital