Syphilis the great pretender: when is cancer not cancer?

The number of cases of syphilis continues to rise in the UK, USA and elsewhere and may present to a variety of clinical specialties. We report a complex case of early acquired disseminated syphilis causing an ulceronodular rash (lues maligna), orchitis, osteitis and lung nodules in an immunocompetent man who has sex with men who presented to the genitourinary medicine clinic. Syphilis should be considered in the differential diagnoses of multiple clinical presentations and optimal management should involve multidisciplinary care. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.