9 Skin Findings That Can Be a Warning Sign Of an Underlying Condition

Every part of our body works together in synergy with the rest, which is why it is often the case that a symptom in one part of the body can indicate that something is wrong with a very different organ or tissue.

Our skin is the biggest organ in our body, and it is constantly renewing, which is why even the smallest digestive, hormonal or immune issue can show up on our skin in a form of a pimple, pigmentation, a rash, or any other manifestation almost immediately.
In some cases, a skin condition, that, at first glance, may appear as a minor problem or not a problem whatsoever, can even be the first sign of a serious illness. These 9 seemingly-minor skin conditions, for example, are all symptoms of a variety of diseases ranging from hormone imbalances to diabetes and even cancer.

1. Skin That Turns Tan For No Reason

Sudden onset skin darkening or patchy skin pigmentation, especially around scars or bends may be an early symptom of a rare hormonal dysfunction called Addison’s disease, that, on average, affects around 1 in 10.000 people and is more common among middle-aged women.

The condition occurs when the adrenal glands don’t produce enough steroid hormones, such as cortisol and aldosterone.
Apart from skin pigmentation, patients with Addison’s disease exhibit the following symptoms:

• Fatigue
• Abdominal pain
• Weight loss.

Interestingly, sudden skin tanness is often the first symptom of the disease, sometimes occurring years before the rest of the symptoms.

2. Constantly Sweating or Having Very Dry Skin

A thyroid that isn’t working properly can trigger specific skin changes.
Both an overactive and an underactive thyroid gland is bad, as it produces hormones that regulate body temperature, heart rate, metabolism, and other body functions, all of which depend on a specific rate and magnitude that can be easily thrown off balance.
When a person has an overactive thyroid, they are said to have hyperthyroidism, whereas an under-active gland causes a condition called hypothyroidism.

A thyroid that is too active increases body temperature and sweating, which is why people suffering from hyperthyroidism will often feel that their skin is warm and moist to the touch.
When the thyroid gland under produces hormones, it will have the opposite effect: the temperature will drop and the sweat glands will be less active, which can make one’s skin feel cold, dry, or even rough to the touch.

3. Hair Thinning

Hair loss and thinning can be an indication that your thyroid isn’t functioning properly as well. The reverse pattern, however, isn’t the case, and by far not all people who suffer from hair loss have thyroid problems.
When the thyroid gland overproduces hormones, patients may experience hair loss. If, however, the opposite occurs and the gland doesn’t produce enough thyroid hormones, a person can lose hair in a very specific pattern: the outer sides of the eyebrows may become thinner.

4. Skin Itching

Extreme itching can indicate cancer. To be more precise, an unbearable itch is a symptom of Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer that alters lymphocytes, which is a type of white blood cell.

These cells are part of our immune system and are produced by lymph nodes, which is why the other symptom of this condition are enlarged and painful lymph nodes on the sides of the neck, the armpits and the groin area.

However, both or either of these symptoms can be caused by many other, more common diseases, such as infections, just to name one, which makes the condition somewhat difficult to pinpoint.

5. Sun Sensitivity

If you find that your skin is increasingly sensitive to the sun and burns easily even when you protect it by wearing sunscreen, it may point to an disease called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), simply known as lupus.
It is an autoimmune condition, which means that the immune system mistakes its own organs and tissues for a foreign object and attacks them, which results in a variety of manifestations, many of which are skin symptoms.
Other symptoms of lupus include:

• A butterfly-shaped rash on the cheeks
• Mouth ulcers
• Fatigue
• Painful and swollen joints
• A fever
• Chest pain, etc.

As for the photosensitivity, it has been estimated that about half of lupus sufferers react more than normal to sun exposure.

6. A Hump Between the Shoulders

Another hormonal dysfunction of the adrenal glands is Cushing's syndrome. It occurs when the adrenal glands overproduce cortisol, commonly known as the stress hormone because it is secreted in response to stress.

Cortisol has a variety of functions in the human body, among which is blood sugar, immune and metabolic regulation, which explains why Cushing’s patients suffer from abnormal obesity, hypertension, as well as skin that doesn’t heal.

Another finding are inflamed, red stretch marks that can erupt spontaneously. But one of the most unusual symptoms of Cushing’s syndrome is a fatty lump between the shoulders, often referred to as the buffalo hump.

Both of these skin symptoms are presenting signs of the condition, which means that they can help distinguish Cushing’s from other diseases.

7. Thicker and Darker Skin On the Neck and Elbow Folds

One of the first signs of diabetes in children can be a thicker and darker skin in certain body parts, such as neck and elbow folds. This condition is called acanthosis nigricans (AN), and it is a sign for pediatricians that they should check a child for diabetes.

As it is the case with many of these symptoms, however, it can mean nothing whatsoever, as certain people who don’t have diabetes can also exhibit AN.

8. A Tender & Slightly Red Spot On the Skin

Spots like the ones you can see in the picture above called erythema nodosum can be a sign of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). These tender spots aren’t always so abundant as we can see on the picture, and they are not always an indication of IBD, but they may be a reason to check for said condition.
Another skin condition related to IBD are pyoderma gangrenosum, which are skin lesions that don’t heal.
IBD is an umbrella term used to denote 2 conditions: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis, both of which are chronic inflammations of the digestive system that make digestion painful and can cause dangerous complications. 
Symptoms of IBD include:

• Diarrhea
• Reduced appetite
• Fever
• Fatigue
• Abdominal pain
• Blood in stool
• Unintended weight loss

IBD is a serious condition that has become more prevalent in the past 20 years, with as many as 3 million patients being diagnosed with the condition in the United States alone.

9. A Specific Kind Of Rash On the Backs Of the Hands

The last skin symptom on this list is a rash that occurs on the tops of the hands called Gottron’s papules. It can appear suddenly, or develop over a long time, and it is a defining symptom of a long-term inflammatory disorder called dermatomyositis (DM).

Other skin conditions, such as the so-called shawl sign, which is a rash that covers the upper back, arms and shoulders in a shawl-like pattern, can also point to this dangerous disease, which mainly affects muscles. DM can also manifest itself through muscle weakness, weight loss, lung inflammation and light sensitivity.

DM is a very debilitating condition, the causes of which are unknown. Patients with DM find it increasingly-difficult to do everyday tasks that require muscle use, starting from lifting objects and climbing stairs to even standing up from a sitting position.

Please keep in mind that the information included in this article is for information purposes only and isn’t a proper diagnosis. If you have any skin concerns, make sure talk to your doctor.

 

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Survivors of childhood Hodgkin's lymphoma face ongoing risk of solid cancers

Adults who survived childhood Hodgkin lymphoma have a continued risk for subsequent malignant neoplasms, according to recent findings .

Researchers observed particularly increased risks by age 50 years for breast, lung, colorectal and thyroid cancers among high-risk subgroups.

“These findings support the need for continued surveillance of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma, regardless of the era in which they were treated,” a professor  wrote. 

“... In this large cohort of patients diagnosed with childhood Hodgkin lymphoma and followed for more than 25 years, we identified subgroups of patients with Hodgkin lymphoma at highest risk of developing specific solid subsequent malignant neoplasms,” they added. “The results of the current study also provide evidence for screening parameters in these high-risk subgroups, both with respect to Hodgkin lymphoma diagnosis as well as the attained age of the survivor of Hodgkin lymphoma.”

Because survivors of pediatric Hodgkin lymphoma face an increased risk for subsequent malignant neoplasms, Bhatia and colleagues conducted an extended follow-up of the Late Effects Study Group — initiated in 1979 as a multinational group of children diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma and other cancers between 1955 and 1979 when aged 16 years or younger —to identify patients at highest risk to support risk-based screening recommendations. 

As only one hematologic malignancy had been reported since a prior update, the current update mainly analyzed solid secondary malignancies. 

Researchers determined risk for solid subsequent malignant neoplasms by comparing the number of person-years at risk under observation with standardized incidence ratios they calculated based on SEER rates. 

Median follow-up was 26.6 years.

The analysis included 1,136 patients diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma when aged younger than 17 years (median age, 11 years; range, birth-16) who the researchers followed for 23,212 person-years after diagnosis. 

Of these patients, 162 developed solid subsequent malignant neoplasms, including 54 patients with breast cancer, 34 with basal cell carcinoma, 30 with thyroid cancer, 15 with colorectal cancer, 11 with lung cancer and 40 with other malignancies. 

Compared with the general population, the study group appeared to be at 14 times (SIR = 14; 95% CI, 12-16.3) the risk for developing a solid subsequent malignant neoplasm. 

In these specific high-risk subgroups, cumulative incidence rates by age 50 years were 45.3% for breast cancer, 4.2% for lung cancer, 9.5% for colorectal cancer and 17.3% for thyroid cancer.

“This large, multi-institutional, international cohort of childhood Hodgkin lymphoma allowed us to determine the risk of new solid cancers such as breast cancer, colorectal cancer and thyroid cancer,” the Prof. said in a press release. “More importantly, we were able to use host and clinical characteristics to identify subgroups of Hodgkin lymphoma survivors who were particularly vulnerable to developing these new cancers.”

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Types of Immunotherapy for Lymphoma

Your specialist may talk to you about using immunotherapy to help treat your lymphoma. It’s a new type of cancer treatment that works with your natural immune system to find and kill cancer cells in your body.
These are the different kinds of immunotherapy you may get for lymphoma:

• Monoclonal antibodies
• Immunomodulating drugs
• Immune checkpoint inhibitors
• CAR T-cell therapy

Monoclonal Antibodies

Your doctor will get your lymphoma cells tested to see if they have certain markers -- proteins called antigens. You’ll get a monoclonal antibody drug that aims at the antigens found on your lymphoma cells.
Monoclonal antibodies are made in a lab. They’re designed to lock onto certain antigens that cancer cells make too much of. This means that they affect mostly cancer cells with little damage to normal cells.
Monoclonal antibodies can work in -
 1. They keep cancer cells from growing by blocking signals sent out by the cancer cells. Blocking the signals stops these processes of the cancer cells growing.

2. They can also bind to the cancer cells and trigger your immune system to kill them. They may do this by marking the cells so your immune system attacks them. Or they can block the signals the cancer cells send out to tell your immune system to leave them alone.

3. Monoclonal antibodies can be attached to toxins, chemo, or radioactive substances. They then carry these cell-killing materials to the cancer cells and lock onto the antigen. This leads to the death of the cancer cells, with little to no effect on your normal cells that don’t have the antigen.

Here are some of the ways monoclonal antibodies can be used, depending on the type of lymphoma you have:
Follicular lymphoma: If you have a large stage I or II, or a certain kind of stage III or IV follicular lymphoma, your first treatment will likely be rituximab and chemo. You might get radiation, too. Then, if the lymphoma shrinks or goes away, you may get rituximab alone as maintenance therapy.
You can get rituximab alone or along with different chemo if the lymphoma comes back after treatment or stops responding to the treatment you’re getting.
Ibritumomab (Zevalin) or obinutuzumab (Gazyva) are other monoclonal antibodies you might get instead of rituximab.

Mantle call lymphomas: You might get rituximab along with chemo as the first treatment for mantle cell lymphoma. You can also get rituximab as maintenance treatment or if the lymphoma comes back.

Diffuse large B-cell lymphoma: You will get rituximab along with chemo for any stage of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). You may also get radiation afterward.
You may get a monoclonal antibody called pembrolizumab (Keytruda) if the lymphoma comes back or doesn’t respond to the treatment with rituximab.

Burkitt lymphoma: Doctors can use rituximab to treat Burkitt lymphoma as your first treatment or as a later treatment. You’ll get it along with chemo.

Marginal zone lymphomas: Both gastric and non-gastric MALT lymphomas can be treated with rituximab. So can nodal and splenic marginal zone lymphomas. If you have any stage of one of these cancers, you might get rituximab, often along with chemo, as one of your treatments. You may also get it if the cancer comes back.

Rituximab, alone or with chemo, might be the first treatment you get for lymphoma in your skin (cutaneous B-cell lymphoma). Doctors can also combine it with the drug hyaluronidase (this is called Rituxan Hycela) and give it as a shot right into the skin lymphoma if it’s only in one area.

You might get a different monoclonal antibody, brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris), by IV if other treatments haven’t worked. Alemtuzumab (Campath) is another option if the lymphoma comes back after other treatments. You might get it by IV or as a shot into the skin lymphoma.

Hodgkin's lymphoma: You may get a monoclonal antibody called brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris) if you can’t have a stem cell transplant or classic Hodgkin's lymphoma comes back after treatment. You might get this as part of your first treatment if you have certain symptoms and blood test results. This drug binds to the CD30 antigen, which is common on Hodgkin's lymphoma cells. It’s attached to a chemo drug, which then kills the cell.

You can get rituximab along with chemo and radiation if you have early stage nodular lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin's disease (NLPHD) that’s causing symptoms or large tumors. You can also get it if you have more advanced-stage NLPHD, either alone or with chemo, and maybe radiation.

T-cell lymphomas: If your lymphoma stops responding to chemo, your doctor may talk to you about trying the monoclonal antibody called alemtuzumab (Campath) or brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris).

Immunomodulating Drugs

These drugs help your immune system work better, but doctors don’t know exactly how they work. The two drugs used are thalidomide (Thalomid) and lenalidomide (Revlimid).
You may get one of these drugs if you have one of these types of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL): a T-cell lymphoma; or a follicular, marginal zone, mantle cell, or diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. You might also get one of these drugs if you have Hodgkin's lymphoma that hasn’t responded to other treatments or that came back after treatment.
You can only get these drugs if you agree to take special precautions to prevent pregnancy because they cause severe birth defects.

Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors

Cells have proteins on them called checkpoints. They help your immune system know the difference between good and bad cells. Lymphoma cells can make these checkpoints and trick your immune system into not killing them. These drugs help keep this from happening.
For example, PD-1 is a checkpoint on your T cells. When it binds to the protein called PD-L1 on another cell, the T cell is stopped from killing that cell. Your Hodgkin's lymphoma cells may make a lot of PD-L1. This tells your T cells to leave them alone. There are drugs that can block PD-1. This means your T cells aren’t turned off and your immune system can attack the cancer cells.

Classic Hodgkin's lymphoma: If the lymphoma has continued to grow while you’re getting other treatment that includes a monoclonal antibody, nivolumab (Opdivo) may be an option.
If you have a stage III or IV Hodgkin's lymphoma that’s not responding to chemo or monoclonal antibodies, or has come back after a transplant, nivolumab or pembrolizumab (Keytruda) might be helpful.

CAR T-Cell Therapy

This is a very new treatment used for some types of B-cell lymphoma. CAR stands for chimeric antigen receptor. CARs are designed to lock onto antigens found on your lymphoma cells. Each patient has their own CAR T cells made just for them.

To do this, you get some T cells filtered out of your blood to make CARs in a lab. These cells are multiplies and injected back, so that the CAR T cells travel through your blood to find, lock onto, and kill the cancer cells. They continue to grow and multiply in your body so that CAR T cells can go on to kill cancer cells for months, or maybe even years.

Your doctor may talk to you about CAR T-cell therapy if you have diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) that’s not responding to other treatments. It’s also approved to treat relapsed or refractory primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma, high grade B-cell lymphoma, and DLBCL arising from follicular lymphoma.

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Guide to Blood Cancers

What Are They?

Your blood is a mix of fluid and different kinds of cells and proteins. Red blood cells carry oxygen, and white blood cells fight disease. Tiny cell fragments called platelets help your blood clot to patch up a cut. Some types of cancer affect the parts of your body that make these things, including leukemia, lymphomas, and myelomas. More than 171,000 people were expected to be diagnosed with blood cancers in 2016.

Who’s More Likely to Get Them?

Doctors don’t know what causes them, but some things can raise your chances of getting one. These include having a family member who’s had one, being around certain chemicals (like benzene, found in gasoline and other fuels), or being exposed to high levels of radiation. In some cases, people who are HIV-positive or have AIDS, or have had the Epstein-Barr virus, may be more likely to get certain types of blood cancer.

Lymphoma

Your body has a network called the lymphatic system, which helps you fight off infection. It includes organs all over your body called lymph nodes -- that filter out bacteria and viruses -- and white blood cells called lymphocytes. Cancers that attack the lymphatic system are known as lymphomas.They’re the most common kind of blood cancer. Because your lymphatic system runs throughout your body, this type can start almost anywhere.

Types of Lymphoma

There are two kinds -- Hodgkin's and non-Hodgkin's -- and they both happen in a similar way. Your body makes lymphocytes that don’t work the way they should, and they clump together to form tumors. They can crowd out healthy white blood cells so they can’t help you fight off disease.

Hodgkin's Lymphoma

The difference between the two types of lymphoma is in the lymphocyte that’s involved. With Hodgkin's lymphoma, your body makes a kind called Reed-Sternberg cells. About 12% of people who have lymphoma have this type, which is named for the doctor who identified it in 1832. It’s one of the most curable forms of cancer.

Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma

If it doesn’t involve Reed-Sternberg cells, it’s called non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. This is the most common form of lymphoma -- more than 30 types of cancer fall into this category. Some kinds grow slowly, while others grow very fast and can spread to other parts of your body. These need to be treated right away and can be hard to cure.

Lymphoma Symptoms and Diagnosis

The most common signs are swollen lymph nodes, fever, unexplained weight loss, and feeling tired. You also might:

• Sweat at night
• Cough
• Have pain in your chest or belly
• Not feel hungry
• Have an enlarged spleen or liver

If your doctor thinks you have lymphoma, she’ll probably want to take a small sample of one of your lymph nodes. From the sample, she'll be able to tell if you have cancer and, if so, what kind.

Leukemia

This type of cancer affects your blood and bone marrow -- spongy tissue inside your bones where blood cells are made. Like lymphoma, it causes your body to make many white blood cells that don’t work right and keep healthy ones from fighting infection. But leukemia also keeps your bone marrow from making red blood cells and platelets the way it should. It’s the most common type of cancer in children, but adults can get it, too.

Leukemia Symptoms

This type of blood cancer can make you feel like you have the flu. You might have a fever, feel weak or sweaty, and have aches in your joints. You also might have:

• Swollen lymph nodes
• Unexplained weight loss
• Bleeding or swollen gums

Other symptoms can include getting infections often, bruising easily, and anemia, which is when your body doesn’t make enough red blood cells.

Leukemia Diagnosis

Your doctor can test your blood and see if you have more white blood cells than normal or low numbers of red blood cells or platelets -- both can be signs of leukemia. She also might want to take a sample of your bone marrow (called a biopsy) to look for cancer cells. She’ll give you medicine to numb the area, then put a needle into a large bone to take out a small amount to have tested.

Myeloma

This type of blood cancer affects white blood cells called plasma cells. They make proteins called antibodies that attack bacteria and viruses in your body. If you have myeloma, your body turns out lots of problem plasma cells that make a protein that doesn’t help fight infections. These proteins can build up in your bone marrow and damage your kidneys, or in your bones and make them weak.

Myeloma Symptoms and Diagnosis

You may not notice symptoms early on, but the first sign is typically bone pain, usually in your back or ribs. You also may feel weak, get infections often, be very thirsty and need to pee more, be constipated, or have numb hands or feet. If your doctor thinks you might have myeloma, you’ll have blood tests to check for high levels of certain proteins, a bone marrow biopsy to look for cancer cells, and scans to see if your bones are thin or fractured.

Treatment: Radiation and Chemotherapy

Blood cancer treatments usually involve chemotherapy or radiation -- or a combination of the two -- to kill the cancer cells. Chemotherapy uses powerful drugs to target the cells, while radiation uses high-energy rays to attack them. These can also damage healthy cells, cause side effects like nausea and hair loss, and make you more likely to get an infection. 

Treatment: Stem Cell Transplant

If other treatments don't work or your doctor thinks your cancer may come back, she might recommend this. Stem cells can become different types of cells, so the idea is to replace problem stem cells with ones that will become healthy blood or immune cells. You’ll have chemotherapy or radiation to kill problem cells, then you’ll get donated stem cells. It works like a blood transfusion -- the cells go through a tube into a large blood vessel.

Look Ahead

Research is under way to boost your chances of beating all kinds of blood cancer. Talk with your doctor about clinical trials that might be right for you. These trials test new drugs to see if they’re safe and if they work. They often are a way to try new medicine that isn't available to everyone.

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