A case of bullous pemphigoid and transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder. Demonstration of a circulating factor reactive with basement membrane zone of skin and of bladder carcinoma.

The association of bullous pemphigoid (BP) with internal malignant neoplasms has occasionally been reported. 1,2 We describe herein a patient who had coexistent BP and transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the bladder. The patient's serum contained antibody reactive with the basement membrane zone (BMZ) of the skin and the TCC as detected by the complement immunofluorescence (IF) microscopy technique. To our knowledge, this is the first such case reported in the English literature. Report of a Case In July 1980, a 54-year-old woman was admitted to the urology clinic of the Kyoto (Japan) National Hospital, because of hematuria. A biopsy specimen from the bladder showed the microscopic changes of TCC, grade 2. After the patient underwent a partial cystectomy, 200 mg/day of oral fluorouracil was given for six months. In July 1981, the patient was rehospitalized because of hematuria and enlargement of the tumor, which was found on cystoscopic examination.