Sebaceous Carcinoma: Clinicopathologic Analysis of 29 Cases in a Tertiary Hospital in Korea

Sebaceous carcinoma (SC) is a neoplasm derived from the adnexal epithelium of the sebaceous glands, and most studies on this neoplasm have been conducted in Caucasians. We retrospectively reviewed the records of 29 patients with SC (16 extraocular and 13 ocular lesions) who were diagnosed from 2001 to 2014 to analyze the clinical and histopathological features of SC in the Korean population. Sixteen of the patients were women and 13 were men. There was an equal sex distribution for extraocular lesions, and a female predilection (M:F = 1:1.6) for ocular lesions. The mean ages at presentation of extraocular and ocular lesions were 69.19 ± 37.19 (range, 32-87) and 67.46 ± 24.46 (range, 43-85) years, respectively. Most lesions occurred in the eyelid (13/29, 44.83%), and most extraocular lesions occurred in the head and neck area (13/16, 81.25%). There was no recurrence or death during the follow-up period. Most lesions were poorly differentiated (extraocular, 43.75%; ocular, 38.46%), had a lobular infiltrative growth pattern (extraocular, 68.75%; ocular, 76.92%), and were basaloid (extraocular, 56.25%; ocular, 61.54%). Only 5 cases (2 extraocular and 3 ocular lesions) showed pagetoid spread. Extraocular lesions were marginally more common than the ocular form. There were higher incidences in elderly patients, who also had the highest incidence of eyelid lesions. The proportion of cells with sebaceous differentiation and prominent growth patterns were variable. Our results show that SC may not be very aggressive in Koreans.