Dermatologic surgeryBasal cell carcinomas of the ear are more aggressive than on other head and neck locations
Section snippets
Methods
A retrospective chart review was conducted on all Mohs micrographic surgery cases performed from 2005 through 2011 at an academic center by 4 surgeons who were assisted by a fellow or resident. Tumors located on the head and neck were included and divided into ear and non-ear groups for comparison. Primary metrics included anatomic location, tumor type and subtype, initial tumor size and final defect area after extirpation, primary versus recurrent tumors, and number of Mohs stages taken.
Results
There was no significant difference in average age between subjects with BCCs on the ear compared with subjects with BCCs on non-ear locations (72.9 vs 69.5 years, P < .01). A disproportionate number of BCCs of the ears occurred in men (86%). By comparison, 57% of BCCs of non-ear locations occurred in men.
A total of 7732 head and neck BCC cases were reviewed, of which 758 (9.8%) were on the ear. Aggressive subtypes on the ear comprised 40% of the ear sample, compared with 33% of BCCs in non-ear
Discussion
Aggressive BCCs subtypes occurred more commonly on the ear compared with non-ear locations. Our study demonstrated the clinicopathological correlation in which aggressive BCC subtypes of the ear were more likely to require more Mohs stages to achieve tumor-free margins. Ear BCCs, even when controlled for subtype, presented as larger lesions and caused more subclinical tissue destruction than non-ear BCCs. The percentage of head and neck BCCs occurring on the ear was 9.8%, which was similar to
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Conflicts of interest: None declared.
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