Incidence of and Risk Factors for Cutaneous Malignant Neoplasms After Blood or Marrow Transplant

Cutaneous malignant neoplasms are the most common subsequent neoplasm after blood or marrow transplant (BMT), but a full assessment among survivors is lacking.

To identify risk factors for subsequent cutaneous malignant neoplasms using the BMT Survivor Study (BMTSS).

This retrospective cohort study included patients who underwent transplant from 1974 to 2014 at City of Hope, University of Minnesota, or University of Alabama at Birmingham and survived 2 years or longer, as well as a comparison cohort of siblings. Both groups completed the BMTSS survey. Data analysis took place from October 2022 to October 2024.

Demographics, pre-BMT and BMT-related therapeutic exposures, chronic graft-vs-host disease (cGVHD), and posttransplant immunosuppression.

Incident cutaneous malignant neoplasms (basal cell carcinoma [BCC], squamous cell carcinoma [SCC], and melanoma) after BMT. Exposures were evaluated for association with subsequent neoplasms using proportional subdistribution hazards models (reported as subdistribution hazard ratio [SHR] and 95% CI).

Among the 3880 BMT survivors (median [range] age at BMT, 44.0 [0-78.0] years; 2165 [55.8%] male; 190 [4.9%] Black, 468 [12.1%] Hispanic, 2897 [74.7%] non-Hispanic White, and 325 [8.4%] of other race [including Asian and Pacific Islander] and multiracial) who were followed up for a median (range) of 9.5 (2.0-46.0) years, 605 developed 778 distinct cutaneous neoplasms (BCC, 321; SCC, 231; melanoma, 78; and unknown type, 148). The 30-year cumulative incidence of any cutaneous malignant neoplasm was 27.4% (BCC, 18.0%; SCC, 9.8%; and melanoma, 3.7%). Seventy-year cumulative probabilities of BCC, SCC, and melanoma were considerably higher in BMT survivors than siblings (18.1% vs 8.2%, 14.7% vs 4.2%, and 4.2% vs 2.4%, respectively). Among BMT survivors, risk factors for subsequent cutaneous malignant neoplasms included age of 50 years and older at BMT (BCC: SHR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.36-2.29; SCC: SHR, 3.37; 95% CI, 2.41-4.72), male sex (BCC: SHR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.10-1.75; SCC: SHR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.39-2.45), pre-BMT monoclonal antibody exposure (BCC: SHR, 1.71; 95% CI, 1.27-2.31), allogeneic BMT with cGVHD (BCC: SHR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.06-2.08; SCC: SHR, 2.61; 95% CI, 1.68-4.04 [reference: autologous BMT]), post-BMT immunosuppression (BCC: SHR, 1.63; 95% CI, 1.24-2.14; SCC: SHR, 1.48; 95% CI, 1.09-2.02; melanoma: SHR, 1.90; 95% CI, 1.16-3.12), and transplant at City of Hope (BCC: SHR, 3.55; 95% CI, 2.58-4.89; SCC: SHR, 3.57; 95% CI, 2.34-5.47 [reference: University of Minnesota]) or University of Alabama at Birmingham (BCC: SHR, 2.35; 95% CI, 1.35-4.23; SCC: SHR, 2.63; 95% CI, 1.36-5.08 [reference: University of Minnesota]). Race and ethnicity other than non-Hispanic White were protective for BCC (Black: no cases; Hispanic: SHR, 0.27; 95% CI, 0.16-0.44; other race and multiracial: SHR, 0.26; 95% CI, 0.14-0.50 [reference: non-Hispanic White]) and SCC (Black: SHR, 0.17; 95% CI, 0.04-0.67; Hispanic: SHR, 0.28; 95% CI, 0.16-0.50; other race and multiracial: SHR, 0.13; 95% CI, 0.05-0.37 [reference: non-Hispanic White]). Total body irradiation was associated with BCC risk among those younger than 50 years at BMT (SHR, 1.92; 95% CI, 1.27-2.92).

In this cohort study, the high risk of cutaneous malignant neoplasms and malignant-specific risk factors suggest a need for personalized patient counseling and posttransplant dermatologic surveillance.