ABSTRACT
Objective To investigate the clinical features, treatment, and outcome characteristics of patients with Merkel cell carcinoma. Methods The clinical manifestations, laboratory tests, diagnosis and treatment, and follow-up data of six patients with Merkel cell carcinoma were retrospectively analyzed. Results Among the six patients with Merkel cell carcinoma, four were males and two were females, with a median age of 66 years old (57-76 years old). All six patients presented with skin swelling, and the clinical stages were as follows: stageⅠ in three patients, stage Ⅲ in one patient, and stage IV in two patients. Two patients were treated with surgery alone, three patients with surgery combined with radiotherapy and/or chemotherapy, and one patient with immunotherapy combined with chemotherapy. Until the follow-up time, four patients had no disease progression, one patient died because of disease progression, and one patient remained under treatment. Conclusion Limited-stage Merkel cell carcinoma is primarily treated with surgery and radiotherapy, meanwhile, metastatic Merkel cell carcinoma needs systemic therapy, and first-line immune checkpoint inhibitors targeting PD-1/ PD-L1 pathway can achieve better therapeutic results.
ABSTRACT
Primary Cutaneous Neuroendocrine Carcinoma(CNEC : or Merkel Cell Tumor) usually occurs as a solitary tumor in middle aged to elderly individuals. This tumor may occur on any layer of the skin but the most frequent location is in the dermis. Electron microscopic studies reveal that the tumor cell contains round, dense core granules similar to epidermal Merkel cell and other cells of the neural crest derived APUD system. We describe the clinical, histological, electron microscopic, immunohistochemical observation of a case of primary CNEC in a 66-year-old female and discuss the theories regarding the histogenesis of this unusual tumor.