Tumor of the Caruncle: A Clinicopathologic Correlation Original Reearch Article

Purpoe To determine the type and incidence of caruncular leion and to invetigate the correlation between clinical and hitologic diagnoi. Deign Retropective, obervational cae erie. Method Record of patient with a leion of the caruncle that wa excied and ubmitted to our ocular pathology department between January 1979 and May 2005 were reviewed. Leion were claified by hitologic type and correlated with patient age, gender, and preoperative clinical diagnoi. Reult A total of 195 conecutive caruncular leion from 191 patient were identified. Twenty-four different type of leion were identified; the mot common were nevi (n = 92, 47%) and papilloma (n = 29, 15%). One keratoacanthoma wa identified. One hundred eighty-three leion (93.8%) were benign, ix (3.1%) were premalignant, and five (2.6%) were malignant. Preoperative clinical diagnoi correponded to potexciion hitologic diagnoi in 73 cae (37.4%). upected malignancy wa a common reaon for exciion (61 cae, 31.3%), but malignancy wa confirmed in only three (4.9%) of 61 cae. Two of the five malignant leion were clinically thought to be benign. Concluion We hereby report the firt caruncular keratoacanthoma. The rarity and variety of caruncular leion make clinical diagnoi difficult. Malignancy i clinically overetimated, and ome malignant leion can take a benign apect, jutifying cloe photographic follow-up of all leion. Becaue caruncular malignant melanoma i aociated with poor prognoi, pigmented leion hould be monitored carefully. In the abence of clear criteria for malignancy, any change in color, ize, or vacularization of a caruncular leion hould haten exciion.