Many heart transplant patients develop multiple skin cancers, researchers at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., found, according to the United Press International (UPI). Dr. Jerry D. Brewer and colleagues reviewed the records of 312 patients -- average age 47.4 -- who had received heart transplants from 1988-2006. Forty-six percent of the patients had developed skin cancer during the 19 years of follow-up. The study, published in the Archives of Dermatology, found patients were more likely to develop squamous cell carcinoma if they had other types of cancer after their transplant, were older or had a known cause for their heart failure. Infection with the herpes simplex virus, being older and using the medication mycophenolate to suppress the immune system were associated with an increased risk of basal cell carcinoma, the study said. "Although a considerable tumor burden was found in this study, the rate of death due to skin cancer was surprisingly low," study authors said in a statement. "Only one patient died of skin cancer, of a melanoma."
