Merkel cell carcinoma with a desmoplastic portion.
Merkel cell carcinoma of the skin usually has a trabecular, intermediate-cell or small-cell pattern of differentiation. We report the case of a 66-year-old man who developed a progressive multinodular plaque that showed a prominent desmoplastic component on preliminary biopsy. Immunohistochemical and ultrastructural studies and the final surgical specimen confirmed that the tumor was a Merkel cell carcinoma. The presence of desmoplasia may mask the diagnosis of Merkel cell carcinoma.
Kossard
S
S
Skin and Cancer Foundation, Darlinghurst, N.S.W., Australia.
Wittal
R
R
Killingsworth
M
M
D000368:Aged; D001706:Biopsy; D015266:Carcinoma, Merkel Cell / Q000473:pathology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002467:Cell Nucleus / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005355:Fibrosis; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase / Q000032:analysis; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000648:ultrastructure
D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase