Subscribe to RSS
DOI: 10.5999/aps.2012.39.5.518
Effects of Preoperative Biopsies on Recurrence in Head and Neck Skin Cancer
This work was supported by the Seoul R&BD program under Grant PA100085 (2010).
Background Skin cancer is the most common malignant tumor in humans. Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) are the two most common types of skin cancers. When skin cancer is clinically suspected, preoperative biopsies are recommended for a definite diagnosis. However, despite a concern over potential increased risk of metastasis associated with mechanical manipulation, there have been few investigations into whether a preoperative biopsy affected the recurrence of BCC and SCC.
Methods Primary BCC or SCC patients who underwent standard surgical excision from 1991 to 2010 were reviewed and a retrospective analysis was performed. Ultimately, 45 BCC patients and 54 SCC patients, who did not meet the exclusion criteria, were analyzed. To identify whether a preoperative biopsy affected the recurrence of BCC and SCC, the recurrence rates of each with and without biopsy were compared.
Results Preoperative biopsy had no statistically significant effect on recurrence (BCC, P=0.8680; SCC, P=0.7520). Also, there was no statistical significance between the interval from initial biopsy to first operation and recurrence (BCC, P=0.2329; SCC, P=0.7140). Even though there was no statistical significance, the mean interval from the biopsy to the operation among the BCC patients who underwent preoperative biopsy was 9.2 months in those who had recurrence and 2.0 months in those who had no recurrence.
Conclusions There was no statistically significant relationship between preoperative biopsy and recurrence of BCC and SCC. However, there was a tendency toward recurrence in patients with a longer interval between the biopsy and the corrective operation in BCC.
This article was presented at the 1st Research and Reconstructive Forum on May 12-13, 2011 in Daejeon, Korea.
Publication History
Received: 21 March 2012
Accepted: 25 June 2012
Article published online:
01 May 2022
© 2012. The Korean Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License, permitting unrestricted noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/)
Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc.
333 Seventh Avenue, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10001, USA
-
REFERENCES
- 1 Pflugfelder A, Weide B, Eigentler TK. et al. Incisional biopsy and melanoma prognosis: Facts and controversies. Clin Dermatol 2010; 28: 316-318
- 2 Renzi C, Mastroeni S, Mannooranparampil TJ. et al. Delay in diagnosis and treatment of squamous cell carcinoma of the skin. Acta Derm Venereol 2010; 90: 595-601
- 3 Rubin AI, Chen EH, Ratner D. Basal-cell carcinoma. N Engl J Med 2005; 353: 2262-2269
- 4 Walling HW, Fosko SW, Geraminejad PA. et al. Aggressive basal cell carcinoma: presentation, pathogenesis, and management. Cancer Metastasis Rev 2004; 23: 389-402
- 5 Johnson TM, Rowe DE, Nelson BR. et al. Squamous cell carcinoma of the skin (excluding lip and oral mucosa). J Am Acad Dermatol 1992; 26: 467-484
- 6 Alam M, Ratner D. Cutaneous squamous-cell carcinoma. N Engl J Med 2001; 344: 975-983
- 7 Karimipour DJ, Schwartz JL, Wang TS. et al. Microstaging accuracy after subtotal incisional biopsy of cutaneous melanoma. J Am Acad Dermatol 2005; 52: 798-802
- 8 Austin JR, Byers RM, Brown WD. et al. Influence of biopsy on the prognosis of cutaneous melanoma of the head and neck. Head Neck 1996; 18: 107-117
- 9 Fentiman IS, Millis RR, Chaudary MA. et al. Effect of the method of biopsy on the prognosis of and reliability of receptor assays in patients with operable breast cancer. Br J Surg 1986; 73: 610-612