Surgical Options for Malignant Skin Tumors of the Hand

BACKGROUND: Primary malignant tumors of the hand, although unusual, may present varied and often complex clinical problems. The main treatment modality of skin cancer of the hand has changed. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 43 patients who underwent surgery for malignant skin tumors of the hand during an 18-year period, from September 1994 to February 2012. The characteristics of the tumor, methods of reconstruction, and long-term results were reviewed. RESULTS: We had 43 patients with 27 melanomas, 14 squamous cell carcinomas, and 2 sarcomas. Their ages ranged from 19 to 74 years (mean, 53.4+/-14.5 years), from 46 to 79 years (mean, 59.7+/-9.6 years), and from 15 to 43 years (mean, 29+/-19.8 years), respectively. Thirty-four cases occurred on the fingertip (16 of those cases on the thumb), 5 cases occurred on the palm, and 4 cases on the dorsum of the hand. Amputation was most frequently used in early cases, but recently, tissue-sparing excision has been performed frequently. The incidence of local recurrence was 3 cases and distant metastasis was 1 case, and the 5-year survival rate was 100%, except in 4 cases due to follow-up loss. CONCLUSIONS: The principles of treatment-to be curative and to preserve function and appearance-are important points. "Preservative surgery" preserves function and cosmesis of the involved finger or hand dorsum or palm. Preservative surgery not only emphasizes less resection and surgery of a smaller scale, but also optimal reconstruction of the soft tissue defect of the digit.

Sebaceous Carcinoma Associated with Breast Cancer, Stomach Cancer, and Colon Cancer: Muir-Torre Syndrome

Muir-Torre syndrome is defined by concurrent or sequential development of internal malignancy and sebaceous neoplasm or multiple keratoacanthomas. Muir-Torre syndrome is very rare, with only 205 cases reported in the literature. We reported a patient with Muir-Torre syndrome with three internal malignancies. A 64-year-old patient with a history of breast cancer, stomach cancer and colon cancer visited our department for treatment of the skin lesion that occurred five years before on the left cheek. The lesion was excised completely with a resection margin of 1 cm, followed by full-thickness skin graft from left postauricular area for reconstruction. Histopathology revealed a 0.2 x 0.2 x 0.1 cm sized sebaceous carcinoma with 4 mm safety margin. The skin graft was well taken within 7 days after surgery and the patient was discharged to outpatient follow-up. There was no complication related with surgery. Muir-Torre syndrome is very rare, as are sebaceous gland tumors. So if a cancer of the sebaceous gland is diagnosed, screening workup for internal malignancy is recommended. Because of its good prognosis, surgical removal of primary or metastatic cancers may be curative and should be attempted where possible.

Nasal Reconstruction with Chondrocutaneous Preauricular Free Flap and Interpositional Vascular Graft: A Case Report

PURPOSE: Reconstruction of a full thickness defect of the nose is a difficult task for plastic surgeons because the anatomical characteristic, shape, and function of the nose all need to be taken into consideration. Most often, a local flap or a composite graft is used, but for a large defect, reconstruction using free flaps is the most ideal method. In free flap reconstruction, the chondrocutaneous preauricular area can be a suitable donor site. We performed a chondrocutaneous preauricular free flap with an interpositional vascular graft for reconstruction of a nasal ala. METHODS: A 46 year-old male presented to the hospital with a right alar deformity induced by a dog bite. During the surgery, the existing scar tissue was removed and thereby a newly formed full thickness defect was reconstructed using the chondrocutaneous preauricular free flap with an interpositional vascular graft harvested from the descending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex vessel between the facial and superficial temporal vessels of the free flap. RESULTS: The flap survived without flap loss and showed symmetry in its overall shape, contour, texture, and color. The patient was satisfied with the results and the surgery yielded no additional scars at the nasolabial fold area. CONCLUSION: The chondrocutaneous preauricular free flap is a valuable method in reconstruction of full thickness defects of the nose, and using the descending branch of the lateral femoral circumflex vessel as the interpositional vascular graft at the anastomotic site produces reliable results.