Aquagenic pruritus associated with metastatic squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix

Aquagenic pruritus has been reported in association with a variety of underlying disorders including polycythaemia rubra vera, myelodysplastic syndrome, the hypereosinophilic syndrome and juvenile xanthogranuloma. However, in most cases the aetiology is unknown. The onset of intractable aquagenic pruritus is reported in a fit 71-year-old lady; however, 10 months later she was found to have hepatic metastases arising from a squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix treated 15 years previously. The occurrence of these two relatively rare conditions is likely to be coincidental. None the less, the close temporal relationship between the onset of aquagenic pruritus and the hepatic metastases raises the possibility of a true association. Aquagenic pruritus may be associated with a wider variety of underlying disorders than previously reported. Intractable symptoms of recent onset in a patient with a past history of cancer should be investigated.