01.12.2011 | Case report | Ausgabe 1/2011 Open Access
Henoch Schönlein purpura associated with pulmonary adenocarcinoma
- Zeitschrift:
- Journal of Medical Case Reports > Ausgabe 1/2011
Wichtige Hinweise
Electronic supplementary material
The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/1752-1947-5-226) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Competing interests
The authors declare that they have no competing interests.
Authors' contributions
DM wrote the manuscript. SW was responsible for the manuscript concept and final corrections to the manuscript. YW and IN analyzed and interpreted our patient data regarding the renal disease. AM and KI performed the histological examination of the skin. RK, HM, HK, HY and TT participated in patient care and collected data. All authors have read and approved the final manuscript.
Abstract
Introduction
Henoch-Schönlein purpura is a common immunoglobulin A-mediated vasculitis syndrome in children. Henoch-Schönlein purpura can also affect adults and is probably related to malignancy.
Case presentation
We report the case of a 61-year-old Japanese man who presented for examination after an abnormal shadow was detected by chest radiography. He received a diagnosis of pulmonary adenocarcinoma, stage IV. Purpura on the legs, abdominal pain, diarrhea, hematuria and proteinuria developed at this time. Henoch-Schönlein purpura was diagnosed, base on the clinical symptoms and histological findings of biopsy specimens of the skin, which showed vasculitis with immunoglobulin A deposits. Our patient received chemotherapy with gemcitabine after successful steroid therapy for the Henoch-Schönlein purpura.
Conclusion
Although hematological malignancies are well-known causes of vasculitides, cases of Henoch-Schönlein purpura associated with lung adenocarcinoma are rare. Our patient was treated with corticosteroid therapy, which cleared the purpura and cytotoxic chemotherapy for the non-small cell lung cancer. However, he died from heart failure due to cardiac tamponade.