A case of sarcomatoid carcinoma of the skin

Abstract

We describe the histological and immunocytochemical findings of an exophytic cutaneous tumour with mixed features of atypical fibroxanthoma (AFX) and basal cell carcinoma (BCC). A 73-year-old woman presented with a rapidly growing tumour measuring 35 mm in diameter and 10 mm in height on the left forearm. The tumour was excised and histology revealed a biphasic tumour with a pleomorphic spindle cell component and an associated tumour composed of discrete islands of atypical basaloid cells with peripheral palisading consistent with BCC. The two tumours merged into each other at one point. The spindle cell tumour showed a positive immunocytochemical reaction to fibrohistiocytic marker of KP-1 (CD68) and a negative immunocytochemical reaction to AE1/AE3, CAM5.2, S-100 and HMB-45, features consistent with AFX. Immunocytochemistry of the basaloid tumour showed a positive reaction to epithelial markers AE1/AE3 and CAM5.2, and a negative reaction to S-100, HMB-45 and KP-1 (CD68). To date, 15 cases of primary cutaneous carcinosarcoma have been reported in the literature. It has been postulated that these tumours may originate from undifferentiated progenitor cells capable of producing multiple cell lines.