Faculty Bibliography

Treatment of malignancy with anti-programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) immune checkpoint inhibitors can cause mucocutaneous side effects resulting from T cell activation. Due to their recent development, the full side effect profile remains to be fully elucidated, however dermatologic adverse events are most common. The main oral toxicities of these immune checkpoint inhibitors include: xerostomia, dysgeusia, and lichenoid reactions. Oral mucositis occurs more rarely in the setting of PD-1 inhibition, and few other reports of a Grade 3 or higher, severe, stomatitis have been reported in the literature. We present a case of a 78-year-old woman with Grade 3 ulcerative oral mucositis that occurred 13 months after initiation of PD-1 inhibitor, pembrolizumab, for the treatment for lung adenocarcinoma. She was successfully treated with prednisone, and pembrolizumab was temporarily held by her oncologist. Physicians should be aware of the possibility of severe mucositis in the setting of PD-1 inhibitors, as well as the management. J Drugs Dermatol. 2018;17(7):807-809.

Mycoplasma pneumoniae-induced rash and mucositis (MIRM) is a recently described clinical entity and should be considered in children who present with oral (94% of patients), ocular (82% of patients), and urogenital lesions (63% of patients). MIRM was first described as a distinct clinical entity from Stevens Johnson syndrome/Toxic epidermal necrolysis (SJS)/(TEN) in 2015 [1]. As a new, uncommon diagnosis it frequently poses a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge for pediatricians and dermatologists. We report a case of MIRM in a previously healthy 15-year-old boy.

Managing pregnant patients with a history of melanoma or with a melanoma diagnosis can be daunting and confusing for dermatologists. We present three clinical scenarios that raise questions about the safety of pregnancy in patients with a history of melanoma, skin biopsies during pregnancy, and excisions and sentinel lymph node biopsies during pregnancy. Our recommendations incorporate the most up-to-date clinical data to help guide clinicians when faced with pigmented lesions and melanoma in a pregnant patient.

We present the case of a 66-year-old woman with a history of systemic lupus erythematosus, who presented with tender nodules on the forearms. The patient reported an 8-year history of pink bumps on the extensor surfaces of the forearms bilaterally that would arise episodically for a few weeks and subsequently resolve with no intervention. Her systemic lupus erythematosus was under good control with oral prednisone 10 mg daily, and the development of these lesions was not associated with concomitant flares of the systemic lupus erythematosus.