(18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography detection of eccrine porocarcinoma

Eccrine Porocarcinoma: A Multicenter Retrospective Study with Review of the Literatures Reported in Korea

BACKGROUND

Eccrine porocarcinoma (EPC) is a rare malignant cutaneous adnexal tumor. Other than several scattered case reports, no comprehensive review on EPC has been conducted in Korea.

OBJECTIVE

To clinicopathologically review all EPC cases from our institutions as well as those reported in Korea.

METHODS

Medical records and histopathological slides of EPC cases in the skin biopsy registries of our institutions were retrospectively reviewed. Additionally, EPC cases reported in Korea before June 2019 were retrieved by searching the PubMed, KoMCI, KoreaMed, and KMbase databases.

RESULTS

Nine EPC cases from our institutions were included in the study. In addition, 27 reports of 28 patients with EPC were reported in Korea. A total of 37 patients with EPC were identified, consisting of 19 males (male:female ratio, 1.06:1; mean age at diagnosis, 65.6 years). The most common site of primary tumor was the head and neck (29.7%). Wide excision was the most common (78.4%) treatment method. Initial metastasis work-up imaging studies were performed in 18 patients (48.6%), and metastasis was confirmed in eight patients (21.6%).

CONCLUSION

EPC is a rare cutaneous carcinoma in Korea. EPC usually affects elderly patients, with no sexual predilection. Due to possible metastasis, careful diagnosis and appropriate metastasis work-ups are warranted in EPC.

Eccrine Porocarcinoma: New Insights and a Systematic Review of the Literature

BACKGROUND

Eccrine porocarcinoma (EPC) is a rare cutaneous neoplasm with high potential for morbidity and mortality. Due to its rarity, there is a paucity of data profiling diagnosis, work-up, and management.

OBJECTIVE

To consolidate reported information on demographics, diagnostics, clinical behavior, treatment modalities, and patient outcomes in EPC to provide a reference tool to optimize diagnosis and management.

METHODS

A comprehensive PubMed search was performed from 1963 to November 2017 using PRISMA guidelines. This yielded 155 articles detailing 206 cases of porocarcinoma.

RESULTS

Eccrine porocarcinoma most often presents in elderly patients on the head and neck or lower limbs. Metastatic disease at presentation is not uncommon (22%). Primary tumor location is significantly correlated with presence of metastasis (p = .038). The most common treatment is excision followed by Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS), although the outcomes after MMS were superior to those after surgical excision.

CONCLUSION

This systematic review of individual patient data reveals that all patients should have a histological diagnosis with imaging considered for high-risk cases. Primary tumor location should also be considered in diagnostic and therapeutic decision-making. Although wide local excision (WLE) is currently the first-line treatment, MMS is becoming increasingly used, with evidence indicating improved outcomes as compared to those seen with WLE.

Eccrine porocarcinoma of the external ear

Eccrine porocarcinoma (EP) is believed to arise from the intraepithelial portion of the eccrine sweat glands. The incidence rate of EP is reported to be 18 per 450,000 biopsies. Most of the diagnosed cases involve the lower extremities; a case of EP involving the ear is rare. We describe the clinical, radiologic, and histopathologic features of EP in an 11-year-old boy.

Eccrine porocarcinoma of the head: an important differential diagnosis in the elderly patient

BACKGROUND

Eccrine porocarcinoma is a rare malignant tumor of the sweat gland, characterized by a broad spectrum of clinicopathologic presentations. Surprisingly, unlike its benign counterpart eccrine poroma, eccrine porocarcinoma is seldom found in areas with a high density of eccrine sweat glands, like the palms or soles. Instead, eccrine porocarcinoma frequently occurs on the lower extremities, trunk and abdomen, but also on the head, resembling various other skin tumors, as illustrated in the patients described herein.

OBSERVATIONS

We report 5 cases of eccrine porocarcinoma of the head. All patients were initially diagnosed as having epidermal or melanocytic skin tumors. Only after histopathologic examination were they classified as eccrine porocarcinoma, showing features of epithelial tumors with abortive ductal differentiation. Characteristic clinical, histopathologic and immunohistochemical findings of eccrine porocarcinomas are illustrated.

CONCLUSION

Eccrine porocarcinomas are potentially fatal adnexal malignancies, in which extensive metastatic dissemination may occur. Porocarcinomas are commonly overlooked, or misinterpreted as squamous or basal cell carcinomas as well as other common malignant and even benign skin tumors. Knowledge of the clinical pattern and histologic findings, therefore, is crucial for an early therapeutic intervention, which can reduce the risk of tumor recurrence and serious complications.