Verrucous Variant of Bowen Disease.
Zita Álvarez Bobillo, Angel Fernandez-Flores
✦ AI-curated · Sources linked
Case in brief
A 91-year-old woman had a long-standing, 25 mm yellowish verrucous lesion on her left leg that clinically suggested verrucous carcinoma. Excision showed an exophytic verrucous tumor without dermal invasion. Histology demonstrated full-thickness architectural disarray, cytological atypia, and pagetoid spread. Immunohistochemistry showed strong, diffuse p16 and Ki67 positivity throughout the epidermis, with negative p53 staining. These findings established verrucous Bowen disease, a squamous cell carcinoma in situ variant.
What made this case unusual
The lesion’s verrucous appearance mimicked verrucous carcinoma, but histology showed an in situ tumor without dermal invasion; diffuse p16 positivity supported verrucous Bowen disease.
Diagnostic / clinical pearl
For an exophytic, hyperkeratotic lesion resembling verrucous carcinoma, assess for full-thickness atypia and dermal invasion; diffuse p16 staining can support verrucous Bowen disease.