Squamous cell carcinoma of the nail bed: three case reports

Squamous cell carcinoma of the nail bed is rare, and the disease is often misdiagnosed as a benign condition. Digital amputation is often performed because of the delay in diagnosis and the involvement of the distal phalanx. Between March 1999 and March 2002, 3 patients presented to the Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital, Hong Kong, with squamous cell carcinoma of the nail bed. Two of the patients underwent a digit-salvaging procedure-namely, wide local excision and flap coverage-and their functional outcome was satisfactory. The remaining patient received partial amputation of the thumb without significant functional loss. A high degree of suspicion is thus needed to detect squamous cell carcinoma of the nail bed; a biopsy of chronic recurrent nail bed lesions should be performed.