BACKGROUND cutaneous metastases are not so frequent and in the medical literature there are several communications of isolated cases, thereby we decided to continue our study initiated in 1981 (45 years). OBJECTIVE our objective is to present the research and review of cutaneous metastases of 45 years through our archives at Hospital do Servidor Publico Estadual de Sao Paulo. METHODS the data were collected from clinical cases registered in our archives at anatomopathology department. RESULTS since 1963 we have registered 209 patients with cutaneous metastases being the anterior thorax region the most affected area and in second place the abdominal region. Breast cancer was responsible for most of the cases in women and the lung in men. CONCLUSION this study represents a signioficant number of cases in medical practice because skin metastases of internal carcinomas rarely are observed and the great predominance, mainly due of his origin were represented by adenocarcinomas.