Hidradenitis Suppurativa Support Group
Hidradenitis suppurativa (hi-drad-uh-NIE-tis sup-yoo-ruh-TIE-vuh) is rare, long-term skin condition that features small, painful lumps under the skin. The disease manifests as clusters of chronic abscesses or boils, sometimes as large as baseballs, that are extremely painful to the touch and may persist for years with occasional to frequent periods of inflammation,...
I just read a disturbing article at the HS Foundation's website as follows:
June 2009
In Memory of david a. geller
1961 - 2009
The David A. Geller Memorial Fund
Today the HSF is mourning the loss of 48-year-old David A. Geller of White Plains, New York. An energetic, dynamic and loving husband and father of three daughters, David lost his long battle with HS, and our deepest sympathy goes out to his family & friends. David developed cancer which was caused by long term HS. This tragedy strengthens our resolve to spread awareness and understanding of HS with the hope that no one else should have to suffer with the pain that David endured.
My question is pretty obvious, cancer?
So what does that mean that we could all die of cancer because of HS. If so that just is discouraging. I emailed the Foundation out of curiousity so we'll see how that goes if anyones interested.
June 2009
In Memory of david a. geller
1961 - 2009
The David A. Geller Memorial Fund
Today the HSF is mourning the loss of 48-year-old David A. Geller of White Plains, New York. An energetic, dynamic and loving husband and father of three daughters, David lost his long battle with HS, and our deepest sympathy goes out to his family & friends. David developed cancer which was caused by long term HS. This tragedy strengthens our resolve to spread awareness and understanding of HS with the hope that no one else should have to suffer with the pain that David endured.
My question is pretty obvious, cancer?
So what does that mean that we could all die of cancer because of HS. If so that just is discouraging. I emailed the Foundation out of curiousity so we'll see how that goes if anyones interested.
the president of the foundation emailed me back this is what she had to say:
HS is not cancer, but there have been many case reports of HS turning into squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) in males with severe, long-standing HS in the buttocks area. The prognosis is usually not very good because the diagnosis is usually delayed. It is not, however, a very common event in HS.
I think all of us with HS need to be aware of this, most particularly in males as described above. I ask my doctor to regularly view my HS areas for any signs of this as a precautionary measure.
The following is a link to a free online article that reviewed SCC and HS in all the literature.
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pubmed&pubmedid=17959012
Kind regards,
Michelle Barlow
President
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Hidradenitis Suppurativa Foundation, Inc.
http://www.hs-foundation.org