Head and neck verrucous carcinoma

Abstract

Verrucous carcinoma is a rare variant of squamous cell carcinoma. The oral cavity, genitals, larynx, esophagus, and skin are usually affected, and the head and neck regions are the most affected areas. Few studies reported about head and neck verrucous carcinoma (VC) in the literature. Therefore, we conducted an extensive population-based study about the VCs to use population-based data to further investigate the incidence, treatment, and survival of head and neck verrucous carcinoma. Patients from Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results database (SEER) between 1973 and 2015 were brought into our study. The data of VCs and other head and neck malignancies (OHNMs) patients were extracted for analysis. We compared characteristics of patients with VC with those of patients with OHNMs. Results were obtained for 2039 cases of VC and 394,739 cases of OHNM. Compared to patients with OHNM, patients with VC were more often female (36.6% vs 31.1%; P < .001), younger (median age 62 vs 67 years; P < .001), and had a smaller tumor size (P < .001). VC cases were of lower histological grade and SEER stage (P < .001). The incidence of VC was 0.075 per 100,000 and decreased over time (annual change −1.855%, P < .001), whereas the incidence of OHNM showed no change. The primary treatment method for VC was surgery, with other treatments showing no significant therapeutic effect. VC is rare, with a decreasing incident trend. The outcome is better compared with OHNM patients. Surgery could significantly improve VC patients’ prognosis.

Dermatopathological Correlation of Clinically Challenging Cutaneous Lesions: A Single Center Experience of 2184 cases

“…Although the diagnosis of viral warts is usually straightforward, slowly growing large exophytic lesions with a papillomatous or verrucous surface and a tendency to compress deep tissues should be considered for verrucous carcinoma, a subtype of squamous cell carcinoma [40]. These lesions are more common in older men and can be found in the oral mucosa, anogenital region, or plantar region [40,41]. The presence of verruca vulgaris in a high number of pathology reports could also be explained by therapeutically excised samples being submitted for legal reasons.…”

Distant metastasis in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma variants: A population‐based study

“…For example, population-based studies have revealed higher DM rates in BSCC than in conventional SCC, 8 and a lower DM rate in VC than in other head and neck malignancies, which are mostly SCC. 12 The AdSC in the larynx had a DM rate as high as 10.7%. 6 However, because of their rarity, no study has compared the rate of DM at presentation between histological SCC variants.…”

“…VC is a highly differentiated variant of SCC characterized by a warty appearance 2 . It rarely presents with lymph node metastasis or distant metastasis (DM) 12 . Moreover, because of its radioresistance, VC is usually treated surgically 13 .…”

“…Additionally, different histological variants of SCC have different rates of DM at presentation. For example, population‐based studies have revealed higher DM rates in BSCC than in conventional SCC, 8 and a lower DM rate in VC than in other head and neck malignancies, which are mostly SCC 12 . The AdSC in the larynx had a DM rate as high as 10.7% 6 .…”

“…2 It rarely presents with lymph node metastasis or distant metastasis (DM). 12 Moreover, because of its radioresistance, VC is usually treated surgically. 13 Collectively, histological SCC variants show characteristics that are different from those of conventional SCC.…”