Granular-cell basal cell carcinoma of the skin

Abstract

Granular cell basal cell carcinoma (GBCC) is a very rare variant of BCC, of which ten cases have been reported in the literature. We describe here a new case of GBCC studied immunohistochemically. The tumor developed on the face of a 71-year old man and showed typical features of GBCC, i.e. a tumor reminiscent of nodular BCC consisting of cells with a granular eosinophilic cytoplasm. Immunohistochemically, tumor cells expressed cytoplasmic reactivity for keratins, CD68 and CD15 antigens, bcl-2 oncoprotein and nuclear reactivity for the p63 protein. Based on a review of the literature, the salient features of GBCC are discussed.