Digital squamous cell carcinoma associated with possibly carcinogenic human papillomavirus type 73 (HPV73): a case...

We present a case report of a 64-year-old female patient with a 5-year history of a digital papule that clinically mimicked a common wart but was histologically diagnosed as digital squamous cell carcinoma (DSCC), a rare malignant cutaneous entity etiologically associated with high-risk human papillomaviruses (HR HPVs). This DSCC was positive for HPV73, which is currently classified under possible human carcinogens and has already been identified in DSCCs. Treatment with electrocoagulation and subsequent total excision with safety margins was successful, and no recurrence was detected during 6 years of follow-up. Analogously to cervical and other anogenital carcinomas, we assume that the incidence of DSCC will significantly decrease in the near future due to the widespread use of effective prophylactic HPV vaccines, which cover the majority of HR HPV types also associated with DSCC. However, HPV73 and other possibly carcinogenic and HR HPV types (as classified per the International Agency for Research on Cancer), which are not included in current prophylactic measures, will cause some portion of HPV-associated neoplasms, but this portion will be very minor.