Giant Merkel Cell Carcinoma Masquerading as a Benign Cyst on the Buttock of an African American Man

We report a case of a 60-year-old African American man who presented with a 4-year history of a previously asymptomatic, recently enlarging nodule on his left buttock, which was initially presumed to be an epidermoid cyst. Physical examination revealed a large, fixed, subcutaneous tumor, and a biopsy revealed merkel cell carcinoma. Immunohistochemical staining was positive for pankeratin, CAM 5.2, synaptophysin, and CD56 and negative for CK7, CK20, TTF-1, chromogranin, CD3, CD20, CD57, MART1, and HMB 45. The patient underwent wide local excision of the lesion with removal of the fascia overlying the gluteus and full body positron emission tomography (PET) and was found to have Stage IIb disease. He subsequently received adjuvant radiotherapy limited to the tumor bed at a dose of 60 gray

Aggressive Extraocular Sebaceous Carcinoma Recurring after Mohs Micrographic Surgery

Sebaceous carcinomas (SC) are rare adnexal tumors with possible aggressive behavior usually arising in the head and neck region of adults in the seventh decade of life. Treatment has traditionally been with surgical excision with 5-6 mm wide margins but Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) has also been reported as an effective treatment modality. We present a case of a Caucasian female renal transplant patient with a rapidly enlarging nodule on the left preauricular cheek that was excised with MMS with negative margins. The tumor recurred rapidly and metastasized ultimately leading to the death of the patient. There was some disagreement amongst pathologists as to the possible nature of the diagnosis with the original biopsy being labeled as a poorly differentiated carcinoma. We aim to highlight the potential aggressive nature of SC and review the features of the neoplasm including histological features that help in making the diagnosis