Common cancer treatment drug may cause temporary fingerprint loss
The drug responsible is capecitabine, used to treat colorectal and breast cancer. A side effect of the drug – hand and foot syndrome (HFS), a condition causing redness, blisters and swelling – was thought to be the cause of the temporary loss of fingerprints.
A recently published study from the Netherlands* found that patients could experience severe loss of fingerprint quality with or without suffering from HFS. More research is needed. The good news is that fingerprints returned in 2 to 4 weeks after treatment ended.
It’s important for cancer patients to be aware of this condition, as fingerprint authentication is now used in commerce and bank transactions, in law enforcement, in some passport applications, and in mobile device log-ons .
Patients that are undergoing treatment would do well to carry a note from their doctor stating that they’re being treated with the drug capecitabine, especially when considering international travel.
*JAMA Oncology, published online August 25, 2016.
Fran Lowry, Medscape.com, August 29, 2016
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