Response to Chemotherapy of Paraneoplastic Erythroderma in a Patient with Ovarian Cancer

Erythroderma is an uncommon potentially fatal skin disorder first described by Hebra in 1868. Erythroderma is a definitive term that refers to generalized erythema and desquamation affecting 90% of the body surface. It usually occurs in individuals older than 40, except when the subjacent disease is atopic dermatitis, seborrheic dermatitis or hereditary ichthyosis [1,2]. Erythroderma represents a reaction pattern, a maximal form of skin irritation that may be secondary to certain cutaneous diseases, drug reactions, infections, solid or hematological malignancies, and other conditions. In the absence of a suggestive history, the clinical and histopatho logic distinction between the underlying causes is often problematic and determining the specific etiology is very challenging, an important proportion of cases being classified as idiopathic erythroderma.