To the Editor.——
A few cases of malignant tumors developing in smallpox vaccination scars have been reported in the literature.1-4 It is well known that scars from burns5 and x-ray treatment may change into malignancy. To our knowledge, the development of basal cell epithelioma in a BCG vaccination scar has never been described. We have, therefore, found it of interest to report the following case.
Report of a Case.—
The patient was a 52-year-old Norwegian woman. Her father had been treated for facial skin cancer. In 1968, she was operated on for a superficial melanoma of the lower part of her left leg. No recurrence was found ten years later. In 1978, hysterosalpingo-oophorectomy was performed for fibromyoma uteri.About 1962, when the patient was 37 years old, she was vaccinated on her left shoulder against smallpox; the vaccination left two scars. In 1968, she received a BCG vaccination