Carcinoma of the Prostate with Zosteriform Cutaneous Lesions

Abstract

Cutaneous manifestations associated with visceral carcinoma are not common. The recorded statistics of this occurrence vary from 2.7% to 4.4%. Carcinoma of the prostate rarely metastasizes to the skin. Our two patients, who had carcinoma of the prostate, developed cutaneous metastasis which occurred in a zosteriform distribution. In a series of 2031 autopsies of various types of carcinoma, Gates 9 found cutaneous metastases occurred in 58 cases in which there was internal organ involvement; an incidence of 2.8%. There was only one case of carcinoma of the prostate associated with cutaneous lesions in this series of cases. Four patients having cutaneous involvement associated with carcinoma of the prostate were mentioned by Arnheim, 2 while Barenghi 4 and Huggins 10 each reported one case. A patient who had carcinoma of the prostate with metastases to the scalp which simulated turban tumors was described by Ronchese. 20 Only one