Course: Lip Squamous Cell Carcinoma With Spontaneous Eruption and Drainage
CME Credits: 1.00
Released: 2023-02-02
A 69-year-old woman with a newly diagnosed T3N2cM0 poorly differentiated squamous cell carcinoma unrelated to human papillomavirus (HPV) of the lower lip mucosa presented to the medical oncology clinic 3 days after initiating neoadjuvant immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy with redness and swelling of the tumor site. Four days after treatment, a white head formed overlying the tumor that erupted through the skin surface (). Thin, cloudy discharge that was not foul-smelling drained from the tumor from posttreatment days 5 to 10, at which point the drainage stopped spontaneously. Throughout, the patient reported no pain and remained afebrile. Laboratory results on days 5, 9, and 14 demonstrated the absence of leukocytosis, and serial wound cultures failed to demonstrate pathogenic growth. No antibiotics were administered. The patient completed the neoadjuvant immunotherapy and underwent a margin-negative tumor resection without intraoperative or postoperative complications.
Educational Objective
Based on this clinical scenario and the accompanying image, understand how to arrive at a correct diagnosis.
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