2007 Volume 117 Issue 2 Pages 153-157
We report a case of infundibulocystic basal cell carcinoma in a 17-year-old man with nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome. He had multiple skin-tag-like nodules on his neck, one of which had recently become black. Histology revealed an intradermal basaloid cell tumor composed of anastomosing epithelial cords. There were some infundibular cystic structures containing corneocytes lined by follicular infundibular epithelium and bud-like structures simulating the follicular germs. Follicular bulbs and papillae were absent. The stroma was scant and not highly fibrocytic. The tumor was diagnosed as infundibulocystic basal cell carcinoma. Since Tozawa and Ackerman, in 1987, described it as an uncommon variant of basal cell carcinoma with a unique combination of follicular differentiation toward infundibula and follicular germ, there has been much controversy over the issue of whether it is truly a variant of basal cell carcinoma or it is actually a trichoepithelioma. The fact that our case occurred in the patient with nevoid basal cell carcinoma syndrome argues that this infundibulocystic basal cell carcinoma was not a trichoepithelioma, but rather a variant of basal cell carcinoma.
