Superficial basal cell carcinoma mimicking Bowen's disease: Diagnosis with noninvasive imaging

Abstract

Background Superficial basal cell carcinoma (SBCC) is the rare subtype of basal cell carcinoma (BCC). BCC occurs in exposed areas such as the head and face, SCBB prone to form in trunk. Due to the manifestation of erythema and desquamation, it is prone to misdiagnosed as Bowen's disease in clinica. Materials and methods A 68‐year‐old female presented with coin‐sized erythema located on the lower abdomen for 5 years. Histopathological examination was performed, and results informed the diagnosis of SBCC. Lesions were detected by dermoscopy, reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) and multiphoton microscopy (MPM). Results Dermoscopy revealed yellow–red background with more dendritic and linear proliferating vessels and more blue‐gray nonaggregated dots structures. RCM displayed streaming of stratum spinosum, tortuous dilated vessels, highlighted inflammatory cells, and medium refraction round and oval tumor cell masses. MPM showed epidermal cells in polar arrangement, increased cell spacing, disorganized stratum granulosum and elastic fibers are gathered in clusters. Conclusion We described a case of SBCC detected by dermoscopy, RCM and MPM. Noninvasive imaging features may provide a potentially tools in recognition and differentiation of SBCC.