title: Relationship between radiation therapy and bullous pemphigoid.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Bullous pemphigoid (BP) is an autoimmune subepidermal blistering disease.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To review the literature on radiation therapy (RT)-associated BP.
  
  
  METHODS
  A review of the English language literature on patients who developed BP during and up to 10 years post RT was performed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  29 patients were reported. 25 (86.2%) were women, 84% of whom had received RT for breast cancer. Three patients were male (10.3%). Gender was not mentioned in 1 (3.4%). 72% developed BP post RT; 28% developed BP while undergoing RT. BP was initially localized to irradiated sites in 25 patients and to non-irradiated sites in 2 patients. Two patients presented with generalized disease. Disease control was reported in 12 patients, partial remission in 7 and complete remission in 5.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The clinical profile, response to therapy and clinical outcome may indicate that RT-associated BP may be a specific subset of BP with a relatively benign course.
authors.affiliation: Center for Blistering Diseases, Boston, Mass., USA.
authors.forename: Tegan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Julia M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kwan
authors.forename: A Razzaque
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Ahmed
mesh_terms: D015551:Autoimmunity / Q000528:radiation effects*; D006801:Humans; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D010391:Pemphigoid, Bullous / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D011832:Radiation Injuries / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology