Pilomatrixoma: Patient Report of a Common Childhood Tumor

Abstract

Pilomatrixomas are common skin appendage tumors of hair matrix cell origin that usually present as a slowly growing dermal or subcutaneous mass.¹ The lesion is well known to dermatologists and pathologists but has received infrequent attention in the pediatric lit erature in spite of the fact that it has a distinct age distribution, occurring most commonly in children and adolescents.² This report presents a case in which the preliminary clinical diagnosis was atypical mycobacterial cervical adenitis, with review of the literature to demonstrate the diagnostic dilemma that can occur.