title: Poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma arising in tattooed skin.
abstract: Introduction. Tattoos have increasingly become accepted by mainstream Western society. As a result, the incidence of tattoo-associated dermatoses is on the rise. The presence of a poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma in an old tattooed skin is of interest as it has not been previously documented. Case Presentation. A 79-year-old white homeless man of European descent presented to the dermatology clinic with a painless raised nodule on his left forearm arising in a tattooed area. A biopsy of the lesion revealed a poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma infiltrating into a tattoo. The lesion was completely excised and the patient remains disease-free one year later. Conclusion. All previous reports of squamous cell carcinomas arising in tattoos have been well-differentiated low-grade type or keratoacanthoma-type and are considered to be coincidental rather than related to any carcinogenic effect of the tattoo pigments. Tattoo-associated poorly differentiated invasive carcinoma appears to be extremely rare.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Creighton University Medical Center, Omaha, NE 68131, USA.
authors.forename: Deba P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Sarma
authors.forename: Renee B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Dentlinger
authors.forename: Amanda M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Forystek
authors.forename: Todd
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huerter