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Merkel cell carcinoma of the head and neck
Author(s) -
Pellitteri Phillip K.,
Takes Robert P.,
Lewis James S.,
Devaney Kenneth O.,
Harlor Evan J.,
Strojan Primož,
Rodrigo Juan P.,
Suárez Carlos,
Rinaldo Alessandra,
Medina Jesus E.,
Woolgar Julia A.,
Ferlito Alfio
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
head and neck
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.012
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1097-0347
pISSN - 1043-3074
DOI - 10.1002/hed.21787
Subject(s) - merkel cell carcinoma , merkel cell , medicine , occult , pathology , metastasis , population , biopsy , lymph node , carcinoma , cancer , alternative medicine , environmental health
Merkel cell carcinomas are uncommon, but aggressive, cutaneous malignancies of neuroendocrine differentiation. To the pathologist, these lesions appear as sheets of undifferentiated tumor cells with little cytoplasm and dense nuclear chromatin. They are members of the group of “small round blue cell tumors,” which includes small cell carcinomas of the lung, lymphomas, and neuroblastomas. Analogous to other skin malignancies, Merkel cell carcinomas frequently arise in the head and neck region and are commonly found in the elderly population. Merkel cell carcinomas have a high propensity for regional and distant metastases, and recurrences are frequently seen. Surgical excision is the recommended first‐line treatment followed by adjuvant radiation therapy. Because of the high incidence of occult regional metastasis, patients with clinical and radioghaphically negative necks should undergo elective dissection, irradiation, or preferably sentinel lymph node biopsy. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Head Neck, 2012