Cancer risk in systemic sclerosis: identifying risk and managing high-risk patients.

Cancer risk in systemic sclerosis: identifying risk and managing high-risk patients. Expert Rev Clin Immunol. 2020 Nov 05;: Authors: Fragoulis GE, Daoussis D, Pagkopoulou E, Garyfallos A, Kitas GD, Dimitroulas T Abstract Introduction: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is associated with a heightened cancer risk compared to general population. Several pathways including immune system upregulation, cumulative inflammation, environmental factors and genetic predisposition contribute to the development of both cancer and autoimmunity. Areas covered: This paper provides an overview of studies investigating the relationship between SSc and various types of cancer with a special focus on the identification of patients at higher risk for malignancy development. The demographic, serological, clinical and disease-related characteristics of SSc individuals who are diagnosed with cancer over the course of their disease are discussed to provide a practical guidance for relevant screening strategies. Articles included were retrieved from PubMed (no date limits used, search was last updated in June 2020).Expert opinion: Several studies have identified subgroups of SSc patients at higher cancer risk based on immunological profile (anti-RNAPol III positivity), diffuse disease type and older age at SSc onset. Additionally, a close temporal association between SSc and cancer onset in certain antibody subsets raises the question as to whether more aggressive scr...
Source: Expert Review of Clinical Immunology - Category: Allergy & Immunology Tags: Expert Rev Clin Immunol Source Type: research