Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2016 Jul 22:10:22-6.
doi: 10.1016/j.amsu.2016.07.017. eCollection 2016 Sep.

Hidradenoma masquerading digital ganglion cyst: A rare phenomenon

Navnit Makaram  1 , Iskander H Chaudhry  2 , Makaram S Srinivasan  3
Affiliations
Case Reports

Hidradenoma masquerading digital ganglion cyst: A rare phenomenon

Navnit Makaram et al. Ann Med Surg (Lond). .

Abstract

Introduction: Mucous cyst is the commonest soft tissue tumor in the dorsum of the distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ) of the finger. We report the first case of a recurring eccrine tumor (nodular hidradenoma), mimicking a mucous/ganglion cyst, on the dorsum of the DIPJ.

Case report: A 54 year old man presented with painless, hemispherical, colored swelling on the dorsum of his right middle finger (dominant hand), which appeared to have recurred from a previous surgery. The lesion was excised and operative findings from the medical notes showed the gross appearance to be a soft, white, glistening, smooth-surfaced, myxoid nodule resembling a "ganglion cyst". Immunohistochemistry showed the tumour to be positive for S100, smooth muscle actin and cytokeratin 7. Ductal differentiation was confirmed by staining for epithelial membrane antigen and carcinoembryonic antigen. The histological features were that of atypical and solid cystic hidradenoma.

Discussion: This is the first reported case of this rare tumour presenting as mucous cyst. We conduct a review of the literature of nodular hidradenomas, illustrating the immunohistologic findings in this tumour to emphasise the atypical features.We emphasise the importance of considering hidradenoma in the differential diagnosis of such lesions of the finger, in view of its high recurrence rate and the possibility of malignant transformation.

Keywords: Adnexal tumour; Eccrine; Ganglion cyst; Hand; Hidradenoma.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
a: Swelling over DIP joint masquerading as digital ganglion cyst with previous surgical scar of prior surgical excision, and nail deformity. b: Swelling over DIP joint masquerading as digital ganglion cyst with previous surgical scar, and nail deformity.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
a.: Medium power photomicrograph (100 x magnification): the tumour nodules show peripheral palisade and ductal differentiation. b.: Medium power photomicrograph (200× magnification): Mitotic activity is evident. c: Medium power photomicrograph (100× magnification): Ductal differentiation is highlighted by CEA antibody. d: Medium power photomicrograph (100× magnification): This highlight the high proliferation index within the tumour islands.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Alsaad K.O., Obaidat N.A., Ghazarian D. Skin adnexal neoplasms—part 1:an approach to tumours of the pilosebaceous unit. J. Clin. Pathol. 2007;60(2):129–144. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Obaidat N.A., Alsaad K.O., Ghazarian D. Skin adnexal neoplasms—part 2:an approach to tumours of cutaneous sweat glands. J. Clin. Pathol. 2007;60(2):145–159. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Lee D.A., Grossman M.E., Schneiderman P., Celebi J.T. Genetics of skin appendage neoplasms and related syndromes. J. Med. Genet. 2005;42(11):811–819. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Dodge L.D., Brown R.L., Niebauer J.J., McCarroll H.R., Jr. The treatment of mucous cysts:long term follow-up of sixty two cases. J. Hand Surg. Am. 1984;9(6):901–904. - PubMed
    1. Stefanato C.M., Ferrara G., Chaudhry I.H., Guevara Pineda C., Waschkowski G., Rose C., Calonje E. Clear cell nodular hidradenoma involving the lymphatic system: a tumor of uncertain malignant potential or a novel example of “metastasizing” benign tumor? Am. J. Surg. Pathol. 2012;36(12):1835–1840. - PubMed

Publication types