[Neurotropic metastasis of squamous cell carcinoma]

Epidermoid skin carcinoma is the second most frequent skin cancer. It is rarely considered as aggressive. Other than its extension through the blood of lymph circulation, perineural invasion is also a significant form of tumoral invasion. We report a case of recurrent epidermoid skin carcinoma beginning with a neurological symptomatology.

A 77 year-old man with a history of right fronto-temporal epidermoid skin carcinoma turned up at our clinic with a ptosis of the right eyelid and hypoesthesia in the nerve VI area. He later developed pain in the arch of the eyebrow and diplopia. Five weeks later, two subcutaneous nodules appeared. Histology revealed a neuro-invasive epidermoid carcinoma explaining the clinical picture. Re-loading of the histological sections of the first injury confirmed the clearly differentiated invasive epidermoid carcinoma. However, renewed classified sections revealed neoplastic cells surrounding the nerve branches in the deep dermis.

Other than the extension through the blood or lymph circulation, epidermoid cutaneous cancers exhibit varying invasion of the nerve structures. Neurotropism is an aggressiveness marker. Only the pathologico-anatomic investigation enables an early diagnosis. In the case of recurrence, neurological symptomatology can precede skin injuries and make diagnosis difficult. The follow-up of the carriers of this type of tumor must include a neurological examination.