Skin Tumours – Histopathological Review of 125 Cases.

ABSTRACT

The skin is the largest organ in the body. A wide variety of hyperplastic growths and tumours, both benign and malignant are encountered in the clinical practice. Any lesion, for which the diagnosis is uncertain, based on the history and clinical examination should be biopsied for histopathological examination to rule out malignancy. Objective: To analyze retrospectively tumours of skin with respect to age, sex, clinical features and histopathological features in a tertiary referral centre in Maharashtra, India. Material & Methods: The present study consisted of analysis of tumours of skin received in the histopathology section of department of pathology over a period of 5 years that is from August 2005 to July 2010. The material comprised of biopsies and excision specimens. The clinical and histopathological details were noted. The findings were compared with those reported by other authors. Results: One twenty five (125) tumours of skin were observed. The benign tumours were slightly more common (51.2%) than malignant tumours (48.8%). The maximum number of tumours was found in 7th decade (25.6%). Maximum number of tumours were found in third decade in benign tumours (20.3%) and seventh decade in malignant tumours (37.7%). Both benign and malignant tumours of skin were common in males than females. The equal numbers of skin tumours were seen in both the head and neck region (44.8%) and the extremities (44.8%). Face was the commonest site for skin tumours (35.2%). The keratinocytic tumours, both benign and malignant were common tumours of skin (62.4%) while neural tumours were rarely observed (1.6%). The Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC) was the commonest malignant tumour (45.9%) followed by Basal Cell Carcinoma (BCC) (34.4%). Verrucas (32.8%) were the commonest benign tumours followed by pyogenic granuloma (21.9%). Conclusion: SCC is the most common malignant skin tumour in India, unlike the Western countries. Histopathological study is a very important step in the diagnosis of skin tumours.