Facial basal cell carcinoma in a young patient with Crohn disease

A 26-year-old man with Crohn disease developed a 10-mm-diameter facial basal cell carcinoma. He was referred to our department, and the tumor was excised with a clear margin. The wound was closed by primary closure, and he made an uneventful postoperative recovery with a satisfactory cosmetic result. Although the increased risk of nonmelanoma skin cancer in immunosuppressed solid organ transplant patients is well known, the association with inflammatory bowel disease remains unclear. There are few articles in the literature on this topic, and the authors believe this to be the first documented case of facial basal cell carcinoma occurring in the context of Crohn disease. Of particular interest is the very young age at presentation.