Neuroendocrine Skin Carcinoma: Merkel Cell Carcinoma Literature Review for a Case Study View PDF

^*Desiderio Adrián
Professor Of Surgery At The Faculty Of Medicine, UBA. Head Of The Department Of Surgical Specialities, Hospital General De Agudos Durand, Argentina

^*Corresponding Author:

Desiderio Adrián
Professor Of Surgery At The Faculty Of Medicine, UBA. Head Of The Department Of Surgical Specialities, Hospital General De Agudos Durand, Argentina

Published on: 2022-12-30

Abstract

Merkel cell carcinoma, also called neuroendocrine skin of the skin, is a very rare type of skin cancer that generally appears as a bluish meat or red color nodule, more frequently in the facial, head, and neck region. Merkel cell carcinoma develops mainly in older people since long-term exposure or a weak immune system can increase the risk of developing it. Merkel cells are at the base of the outermost layer of the skin (epidermis) and are connected to nerve endings that are responsible for the sense of touch. It tends to grow quickly and spread to other parts of the body. Therefore, the treatment options for Merkel cell carcinoma depend on whether the cancer has spread beyond the skin.

Keywords

Neuroendocrine Skin Carcinoma; Merkel Cell Carcinoma

Introduction

Merkel cell carcinoma is a rare cutaneous malignant neoplasia, first described in 1972. It originates from the neural crest cells, which generate the round Merkel cells, located in the basal stratum of the epidermis. Its etiology is not fully understood, there are several risk factors related to their pathogenesis, which include exposure to ultraviolet light, a history of squamous cell carcinoma or basal cell carcinoma, immunosuppression (patients with HIV AIDS stadium), or hematological neoplasia’s. Recently, a Merkel cell polyomavirus virus has been described that could explain viral oncogenesis since up to 80% integration of the virus to neoplastic cells has been found. It is a very rare disease since around 2000 cases have been documented, since the first description in 1972. The incidence is 0.01 - 0.23 per 100,000 thousand inhabitants, being more common in white leather people. 78% occurs in over 59 years. It affects both genres more frequently in men (Figure 1). It is mostly produced in areas exposed to the sun such as the head and neck in 50.8% of cases, although also in very low proportions they could appear in non-exposed regions, such as the vulva, penis, pharynx, or mucous membranes. It has an aggressive character from the beginning and according to the published series, lymphatic dissemination is observed in diagnosis by up to 27 - 32% of patients. In fact, the Ganglione stadium is the main prognostic factor, with survival rates at 5 years of 51% diagnosis in localized tumors and <14% in the case of distance metastasis.