ABSTRACT
AIM: Cancer following organ transplantation is a growing public health concern. We describe the first 5 years' experience of a dedicated dermatology clinic for renal transplant recipients, the first of its type in New Zealand. METHODS: Data from patients seen in the clinic were collected on a nephrology/dermatology database. RESULTS: 86 of 99 transplant recipients had a baseline dermatology assessment. Seventy-one skin cancers (45 squamous, 25 basal cell carcinomas, 1 melanoma) were found in 17 patients. Eighteen of these were an incidental finding at the baseline post-transplant examination of 7 patients: they had not been noted either by the patient or by their nephrologist. A further 44 cancers were found in 13 patients at follow-up examinations in the dedicated clinic. Squamous and basal cell carcinomas received definitive treatment after 26 and 38 days (median) respectively. A brief analysis showed this to be a cost-effective way of diagnosing and treating skin cancer in this cohort of patients. CONCLUSION: The clinic is enabling prompt diagnosis and cost-effective treatment of skin cancers developing in renal transplant recipients and is also identifying significant numbers of pre-existing skin cancers in these patients.
