Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare but aggressive cutaneous tumor with a predilection for the head and neck of elderly Caucasian patients. Although much less common than melanoma, MCC has higher rates of sentinel lymph node involvement, local and regional recurrences, and mortality. The majority of MCC cases have been linked to the relatively newly discovered Merkel cell polyomavirus, which is a ubiquitous constituent of the skin flora. Recent discoveries regarding viral integration and carcinogenesis and the immunologic features of MCC have expanded the understanding of MCC. These discoveries have led to the development and application of emerging therapies such as somatostatin analogs, immune checkpoint inhibition, adoptive cell therapy, and other exciting possibilities for targeted therapy.
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Effectiveness and Safety of Treatments for Early-Stage Merkel Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized and Non-Randomized Studies.
Cancer Med
January 2025
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Robert C. Byrd Health Sciences Center, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA.
Objective: The lack of consensus on the benefits and harms of standard therapies, including surgery (SRx), radiotherapy (RTx), chemotherapy (CTx), and their combinations among early-stage MCC, prompted this study.
Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized and non-randomized studies published between January 01, 1972, and January 31, 2023, and having overall survival (OS), local recurrence (LR), regional recurrence (RR), disease-specific survival (DSS), and/or disease-free survival (DFS) as outcomes was conducted using the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL), PubMed (NCBI), Scopus (ELSEVIER), and Web of Science (CLAVIRATE) databases. Hazard ratios (HRs) and their variances were pooled using the inverse variance heterogeneity model.
Dermal CIC-Rearranged Sarcoma With Neuroendocrine Differentiation Mimicking Merkel Cell Carcinoma.
J Cutan Pathol
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SkinPath Solutions, Smyrna, Georgia, USA.
Capicua transcriptional repressor (CIC)-rearranged sarcoma (CRS) is a rare and recently described tumor that most commonly affects patients between 15 and 30 years of age. It is an undifferentiated round cell malignancy, with a disease defining CIC fusion, with double homeobox 4 (DUX4) being the most common partner. Here, we report a 77-year-old woman who presented with a cutaneous thigh mass with a clinical morphology suggesting Merkel cell carcinoma.
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Second Dermatology Department, School of Health Sciences, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece.
The dermoscopic rainbow pattern (RP), also known as polychromatic pattern, is characterized by a multicolored appearance, resulting from the dispersion of polarized light as it penetrates various tissue components. Its separation into different wavelengths occurs according to the physics principles of scattering, absorption, and interference of light, creating the optical effect of RP. Even though the RP is regarded as a highly specific dermoscopic indicator of Kaposi's sarcoma, in the medical literature, it has also been documented as an atypical dermoscopic finding of other non-Kaposi skin entities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExpanding Insights Into PRAME Expression in Merkel Cell Carcinoma.
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Pathology Department, Virgen Macarena University Hospital, Seville, Spain.
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About the authors: Yakup Ülger, MD, is Associate Professor Dr., Department of Gastroenterology, Faculty of Medicine, Çukurova University, Adana, Turkey.
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