Differentiated exophytic vulvar intraepithelial lesion: Clinicopathologic and molecular analysis documenting its relationship with verrucous carcinoma of the vulva

Abstract

Verruciform proliferations of the vulva unrelated to HPV infection are rare. The term differentiated exophytic vulvar intraepithelial lesion (DEVIL) was recently proposed for these lesions, which harbor recurrent PIK3CA mutations. It is still unclear whether DEVIL is related to verrucous carcinoma, a neoplasm characterized by persistence and local recurrence but nil risk of distant spread. Specimens identified using the words “verruciform” and “verrucous” were reviewed. Diagnosis of DEVIL required verruciform acanthosis, hyper and/or parakeratosis, hypogranulosis, cytoplasmic pallor, and bland nuclei. Verrucous carcinoma required, in addition, discontinuous, bulbous, puzzle-like nests in the stroma. A targeted next-generation sequencing using a custom 11-gene panel was performed. Eighteen specimens corresponding to ten patients with DEVIL and/or verrucous carcinoma were included. Median age at presentation was 66 years for DEVIL and 70 years for verrucous carcinoma. A similar spectrum of prevalent mutations was found in both lesions involving HRAS, PIK3CA, and BRAF. DEVIL preceded verrucous carcinoma and/or was diagnosed concurrently or in subsequent follow-up in five patients. In four of these, the same mutation was identified in DEVIL and synchronous or metachronous carcinoma. All cases showed wild-type 53 staining and lacked pathogenic TP53 mutations. DEVIL is a rare form of squamous proliferation characterized by prevalent PIK3CA and HRAS mutations. Its temporal relationship with verrucous carcinoma and their shared mutational profile in some patients suggest that DEVIL is a precursor of verrucous carcinoma. Moreover, given their morphologic and molecular overlap and the nil risk of verrucous carcinoma for distant spread, it is conceivable that DEVIL and verrucous carcinoma represent a spectrum of the same entity.