Abstract
Skin cancer involving the scalp is a common malignancy in the sunbelt areas of the United States. Most early lesions are well managed by primary care physicians and dermatologists. Occasionally, we encounter basal cell, squamous cell, and, rarely, Merkel cell carcinomas that have failed local therapy and present with large tumors invading the full thickness scalp, calvarium, and occasionally the underlying brain. We describe our experience with 12 such tumors and illustrate their resections and reconstruction. For full thickness lesions, we generally do a wide field resection of the skull and underlying calvarium followed by dural resection and that of the underlying brain, if affected in ineloquent regions. Reconstruction is usually with dural replacement, calvarial reconstruction with titanium mesh, and cutaneous reconstruction with a musculocutaneous free flap or muscular free flap with an overlying skin graft. Complications, survival rates, and recurrence rates will be presented.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.