A rare giant extraocular, anterior chest wall sebaceous carcinoma

Sebaceous carcinoma (SC) is a rare aggressive cutaneous malignant tumour. It accounts for less than 1 % of all cutaneous malignant tumours. Sebaceous carcinomas are divided into ocular and extraocular constituting 75 % and 25 % respectively. The most common extraocular site is parotid gland. Chest wall is a rare site of this tumour.

In line with SCARE criteria (Agha et al., 2018 [1]), this report is a case of a 45-year-old African male patient who presented with a two-year history of a large right anterior chest wall tumour. He reported that the tumour started as a small lump, which grew gradually over a two-year period. The patient reported no history of visceral malignancy and radiation exposure. However, his risk factors were age and immunosuppression in the form of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The tumour was initially diagnosed as sebaceous adenocarcinoma by incisional biopsy before the patient had been referred to the treating team a year before. Excision of the tumour with wide margins was undertaken, and histology results confirmed sebaceous carcinoma.

Sebaceous carcinoma is a rare and aggressive adnexal tumour. It is categorized as ocular and extraocular. Of these two, the more common is extraocular. The chest wall is a rare site for this tumour. The definitive diagnosis of this kind of tumour is done by tissue biopsy. In dealing with this tumour, surgical excision with wide margins is the standard treatment.

Sebaceous carcinoma is a rare aggressive malignant tumour originating from sebaceous gland. Early diagnosis and wide excision with negative margins improves survival.