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November 2001
Case submitted by Stephen M. Schleicher,
MD
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CASE:
A 63-year-old woman has a nodule on her left leg that occasionally
bleeds and has been increasing slowly in size over a two-year
period. The patient has no history of skin cancer or other
malignancy. Examination reveals a 2.0-cm erythematous, indurated
plaque on the affected ankle. The medial pole appears quite
friable.
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This patient has a basal cell carcinoma, nearly
1 million new cases of which are diagnosed each year in the
U.S. This neoplasm typically affects the head and neck, and
its appearance on the ankle is uncommon. The lesion is also
nodular, another unusual feature; most basal cell carcinomas
found on the extremities are superficial. |
Dr. Schleicher is director of the DermDx Centers for Dermatology
of Northeastern Pennsylvania and a clinical instructor of dermatology
at Graduate Hospital's City Line Campus in Philadelphia, Kings
College in Wilkes-Barre, and Beaver College in Glenside, Pennsylvania.
He is also a member of the EMERGENCY MEDICINE editorial board.
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