Metastatic Basosquamous Carcinoma

Abstract

Basosquamous carcinoma is a rare cutaneous tumor considered by some authors as an aggressive type of basal cell carcinoma having a propensity for local recurrence and a potential risk for regional and distant metastatic spread. Herein we present 2 cases of basosquamous carcinoma of head and neck region, with metastatic spread to parotid gland (case 1) and to cervical nodes (case 2). Both patients had recurrence 2 years after initial treatment of the primary lesion (first patient: surgery; second patient: radiotherapy) and at the same time developed regional metastases. We conclude that basosquamous carcinoma must be considered as an aggressive variant of basal cell carcinoma having a great propensity to metastasize even at an early tumor stage. The clinical features, the morphologic aspects, and the treatment of this rare entity are discussed in this article.