Clinical Features and Association with Visceral Malignancy in 80 Patients with Sebaceous Neoplasms

Sebaceous neoplasm is a rare subgroup of appendageal tumors that differentiate towards sebaceous adnexal structures of the skin and are known to be associated with visceral malignancy.

We aimed to analyze and compare the clinical data including the past history of associated visceral malignancy in patients with sebaceous carcinoma (SC) and benign sebaceous neoplasms (BSN), such as sebaceous adenomas and sebaceomas.

We retrospectively reviewed the cases of consecutive patients diagnosed with sebaceous neoplasms. Basic demographic data, past medical history, and clinical data regarding the size, location, and presence of associated visceral malignancies were evaluated.

A total of 80 patients of sebaceous neoplasms (51 SC, 29 BSN) were included. A total of 18 associated visceral malignancies were found in 14 patients (8 SC, 6 BSN). Two patients were diagnosed with subsequent visceral malignancies during the primary work-up process for sebaceous neoplasms. The mean age at diagnosis of the visceral malignancies was 63.9 and 47.5 years for patients with SC and BSN, respectively. The most common site of visceral malignancies was the gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Adenocarcinoma was the most common histologic type of the visceral malignancy noted.

We observed associated visceral malignancies in 15.7% of patients with SC and 20.7% with BSN. Our results suggest a need for screening of visceral malignancies, especially of the GI tract, in patients with sebaceous neoplasms.