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A rare case of Merkel cell carcinoma with ovarian metastasis
Nicole Keller1, Beatrix Haemmerle1, Seraina Schmid1
1Gynecology and Obstetrics, Hospital Grabs, Spitalstrasse 44, CH-9472 Grabs, Switzerland.
Introduction:
Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare cutaneous malignancy that normally occurs in sun-exposed areas of the skin. Risk factors are immundeficency and Merkel cell polyomavirus.Treatment options are surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy and immunotherapy in clinical trials.
Case Report:
We describe a case of an 80-year-old woman with ovarian metastasis of MCC six years after excision of a cutaneous MCC on the cheek.
Discussion:
To our knowledge only three cases with ovarian metastasis of MCC have been described so far. Our case is the second with distant metastasis to the ovary spreading from a primary tumor in the skin of the head, in the other two cases the primary tumor was in the inguinal skin.
Conculsion:
MCC is a highly aggressive cutaneous and mucosal malignancy with frequent recurrence, lymph node and distant metastases. There is no clear consensus how to treat metastatic disease.
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