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Metastatic basal cell carcinoma of the head and neck
Author(s) -
Tavin Ellis,
Persky Mark S.,
Jacobs Joseph
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
the laryngoscope
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.181
H-Index - 148
eISSN - 1531-4995
pISSN - 0023-852X
DOI - 10.1288/00005537-199508000-00008
Subject(s) - medicine , cervical lymph nodes , basal cell carcinoma , head and neck , malignancy , carcinoma , basal cell , pathology , lymph , lesion , oncology , metastasis , cancer , surgery
Metastases are occasionally associated with cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma but only rarely with basal cell carcinoma. There are approximately 200 cases of metastases from basal cell carcinoma reported in the world literature. We describe 6 additional cases. All of our patients demonstrated recurrence at the primary site before they developed their metastases. Metastases presented in subcutaneous tissue, cervical lymph nodes, bone, and lung between 1.5 and 14 years after initial treatment of the primary lesion. The long interval seen in these patients between the initial treatment of the primary and the development of metastases underscores the need for long‐term follow‐up in what is often thought to be a nonaggressive, nonmetastasizing malignancy.