Sporadic Porphyria in a Patient with Stage II Melanoma Treated with Interferon α

Porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT) is the most common form of human porphyria, due to reduced activity of uroporphyrinogen decarboxylase (UROD). There are many factors which can trigger PCT such as viral infections, excessive alcohol intake, iron overload, hepatotoxic drugs and hepatic tumours. Drug induced PCT is well documented but PCT induced by interferon α has rarely been described and only in cases of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) infection or haematological malignancies. Here, we report the first case of de novo PCT induced by adjuvant interferon α (IFNα) therapy in a patient with stage II melanoma.