Because scleroderma is an auto-immune disease, scientists first studied genes that control the immune system. DR52a variants of the DR genes are 17 times more likely to develop complications in their lungs, compared to scleroderma patients lacking these variants. Certain variants of the DP and DR genes are linked with certain patterns of auto-immune proteins in the blood. Some of the relationships above vary across different ethnic groups, for example, the Japanese. Another powerful genetic effect is gender.
Women are much more likely to develop scleroderma than men.
Several other chemicals, including benzene, toluene, and vinyl chloride, also raise the risk. I and II could statistically predict who would get scleroderma and who would not. Certain medications, especially the anti-cancer medicine bleomycin, can lead to scleroderma. Bleomycin breaks chromosomes, which may be a factor in triggering scleroderma. When a mother is carrying a fetus, cells from the fetus enter the mother's bloodstream.