title: Cutaneous metastasis from lung cancer: retrospective analysis of 30 patients.
abstract: Lung carcinoma is one of the most frequent sources of skin metastases in male patients. Our objective was to analyse the clinical and pathological features of 30 patients with skin metastases from lung carcinoma. Cutaneous biopsies codified as 'skin metastasis from lung carcinoma' during 1988-2009 at Bellvitge Hospital (Barcelona, Spain) were reviewed. The histological types of 30 lung carcinomas (29 men, 1 woman) were squamous cell carcinoma (10 cases), undifferentiated carcinoma (7), adenocarcinoma (6), small cell carcinoma (5) and large cell carcinoma (2). The most frequent clinical presentation was as a solitary nodule (16 cases), and the most frequent site was the head (13 cases). Cutaneous metastases were present at the time of diagnosis of the lung primary tumour in 66% of cases. Skin biopsy might be helpful to establish the histological type of tumour, and thus help with therapeutic decision-making. Cutaneous metastases from lung cancer remain a poor prognostic feature.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology Pathology Pneumology, Bellvitge Hospital, IDIBELL, Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain. jmarcoval@bellvitgehospital.cat
authors.forename: Joaquim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marcoval
authors.forename: Rosa María
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Penín
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Llatjós
authors.forename: Ignacio
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Martínez-Ballarín
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001706:Biopsy; D002277:Carcinoma / Q000473:pathology* / Q000556:secondary; D005260:Female; D006258:Head and Neck Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000556:secondary; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology* / Q000556:secondary