Successful treatment of lymphomatoid papulosis with photodynamic therapy

A 40-year-old woman presented with a prolonged history of recurrent crops of erythematous papules and nodules on her abdomen, arms and legs. Histological examination of a cutaneous biopsy revealed Type A lymphomatoid papulosis. Over a 3-year period, some of the patient's lesions had proven to be resistant to treatment with topical and intralesional corticosteroids and systemic agents including methotrexate, tetracycline and nicotinamide. These resistant lesions were treated with two sessions of methyl aminolevulinate photodynamic therapy given 1 week apart. Review 11 months post-photodynamic therapy demonstrated complete clinical clearance at the treatment site. While photodynamic therapy is considered a standard non-surgical treatment option for non-melanoma skin cancers and has been described in a number of non-oncological indications, this is the first report of its use in lymphomatoid papulosis.