This article has been peer reviewed and approved by Michael Fisher, MD, Professor of Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Review date: November 2009.
Drs. Beachkofsky, Wisco, S. S. Osswald, M. B. Osswald, and Hodson report no conflict of interest. The authors report no discussion of off-label use. Dr. Fisher reports no conflict of interest. The staff of CCME of Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Cutis® have no conflicts of interest with commercial interest related directly or indirectly to this educational activity. Dr. Beachkofsky is a transitional intern and Dr. Wisco is a dermatology attending, both from San Antonio Military Medical Center. Dr. S. S. Osswald is Chief, Division of Dermatology and Cutaneous Surgery, UT Health Science Center, San Antonio. Dr. M. B. Osswald is the Hematology/Oncology Fellowship Program Director, San Antonio Uniformed Services Health Education Consortium, Fort Sam Houston, and Assistant Professor of Medicine, Uniformed Services University of the Health Services, Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Hodson is a Mohs surgeon fellow, Skin Surgery Center, Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Thomas M. Beachkofsky, MD; Oliver J. Wisco, DO; Sandra S. Osswald, MD; Michael B. Osswald, MD; Darryl S. Hodson, MD
The literature on cutaneous metastatic disease can be difficult to interpret because of inconsistent study design and analysis among authors. Furthermore, one should be careful when reviewing the statistics in the literature, as reported patient populations tend to vary and are not representative of the whole population. However, certain trends are notable and should be reported. Diagnosis of cutaneous metastatic disease carries a grave prognosis. We describe a patient with pulmonary cutaneous metastasis and provide a review of the literature on nonmelanomatous solid tumor malignancies that most commonly have cutaneous metastases. The review will focus on epidemiology, clinical presentation, histology and immunohistochemical staining, and prognosis and management. The most common cutaneous metastasizing carcinomas—breast, lung, and colorectal cancer—also are discussed.
