ABSTRACT
Introduction: Basaloid squamous cell carcinoma (BSCC)is a rare, poorly differentiated variant of squamous cellcarcinoma (SCC). The diagnosis is made only after exclusionof conventional squamous cell carcinoma, adenoid cysticcarcinoma and small cell carcinoma. Our aim is to presenttwo cases of BSCCs identified in oesophagus with detailedclinicopathological, histological and immunohistochemicalfindings for better understanding of this rare entity which haslimited literature available to avoid misdiagnosis.Case Report: A detailed study of clinical and pathologicparameters in two cases of BSCC reported in our departmentwho had underwent potentially curative surgical resectionafter a preliminary post biopsy diagnosis was made.Microscopically, both the cases showed a quite similarpicture; they were composed of relatively small tumour cells,arranged in solid lobules with abundant comedo- necrosis.However, there were some minor variations as one of themwas accompanied by large areas of typical conventional SCC,whereas the other one showed presence of bizarre cells. Onimmunohistochemical analysis, the tumour cells showedstrong positivity for pan-CK with a high Ki67 index of 80-85%.Conclusion: BSCC have a poorer prognosis than conventionaloesophageal squamous cell carcinoma, but no definitivespecific treatment protocol has been established till date.Still these cases were considered worthy of discussion due tothe distinctness of this entity especially considering the siteoesophagus where it is regarded to be quite rare, in addition toits aggressiveness and poor outcome.