A case of subcutaneous sarcoid nodules induced by interferon-alpha

A 57-year-old woman came to our hospital complaining of multiple subcutaneous nodules that developed while she received corticosteroid therapy for pulmonary sarcoidosis. She was treated with interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) at another hospital for C-type chronic hepatitis and she noticed these nodules with tenderness two months after treatment began. A biopsy specimen of the nodule revealed subcutaneous sarcoid granuloma. Her abnormally high serum-ACE value and subcutaneous nodules resolved after the dose of IFN-alpha was gradually reduced. IFN therapy should be used with care in cases of sarcoidosis in which IFN-gamma and T-lymphocytes are mainly involved.