Squamous Cell Lung Cancer Associated With Systemic Sclerosis

We here describe a 50-year-old woman diagnosed with squamous cell lung cancer (SqLC) with underlying interstitial lung disease (ILD) 14 years after a diagnosis of systemic sclerosis (SSc). We reviewed the literature and collected 21 well-documented cases with SqLC associated with SSc including the present case. Several characteristics of SqLC associated with SSc have been found. First, the average age at diagnosis of SqLC is 57 years, which is much younger than that reported for patients without SSc. Second, SqLC could occur even in never or light smokers, although SqLC usually has a strong association with smoking history. Third, two-thirds of the available cases have ILD. In addition, SqLC developed in the area of ILD in most cases with ILD. Fourth, SqLC generally occurs after a long period from the diagnosis of SSc; the average of this interval reaches 12 years. It would be helpful to know these features so that physicians follow up and treat SSc patients adequately.