The association of malignancy with SLE: an analysis of 150 patients under long-term review

We describe seven patients who developed malignancy before, after or at the onset of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). They comprise three cases of breast adenocarcinoma, two cases of Hodgkin's lymphoma, and one each of cholangiocarcinoma and thymoma. Only one of this group had been treated with cytotoxic agents, and five have subsequently died. They belonged to a group of 150 SLE patients, many of whom had been treated with steroids and cytotoxic agents, under long-term follow-up at a specialized lupus clinic. We discuss the reported association of malignancy in patients with SLE.