Treatment of hemodialysis-related porphyria cutanea tarda with plasma exchange

A patient with hemodialysis-related porphyria cutanea tarda was treated with plasma exchange. A rapid clinical response occurred coincidentally with a significant fall in the plasma porphyrin level. The level fell further over the following few months without additional therapeutic intervention, whereafter a slow rise occurred without recurrence of skin disease. We suggest that this form of treatment may be ideal for the patient with porphyria cutanea tarda and chronic renal failure in whom no alternative therapy is available for the cutaneous problem.