What is the difference between nodular and micronodular basal cell carcinoma?

Micronodular basal cell carcinoma is thought to have a greater potential for clinically surreptitious tumor spread compared with the majority of basal cell carcinomas that are nodular. They also have wider and deeper tumor extensions than nodular basal cell carcinomas of similar clinical size.

Is nodular basal cell carcinoma aggressive?

Superficial and nodular BCC subtypes behave with relatively indolent malignant behaviour. More aggressive BCC subtypes include micronodular, infiltrating, morphoeic or sclerosing, and BCC with squamous differentiation—these aggressive subtypes were assessed combined as “aggressive subtype,” in this study.

What does Micronodular mean?

[ mī′krō-nŏj′ə-lər ] adj. Of or characterized by the presence of minute nodules.

How serious is nodular basal cell carcinoma?

How dangerous is BCC? While BCCs rarely spread beyond the original tumor site, if allowed to grow, these lesions can be disfiguring and dangerous. Untreated BCCs can become locally invasive, grow wide and deep into the skin and destroy skin, tissue and bone.

Do you get pain with basal cell carcinoma?

It may feel itchy, tender, or painful. Basal cell and squamous cell skin cancers can look like a variety of marks on the skin. The key warning signs are a new growth, a spot or bump that’s getting larger over time, or a sore that doesn’t heal within a few weeks.

What is the best treatment for nodular basal cell carcinoma?

Surgical excision is the first-choice treatment for BCC, and Mohs micrographic surgery is the best treatment for the high-risk forms. Other physical treatments recommended are curettage and cautery, cryosurgery, carbon dioxide laser, photodynamic therapy (PDT) and radiotherapy.

What will happen if basal cell carcinoma is left untreated?

Basal cell carcinoma is a slow growing skin tumor. It usually does not spread to distant parts of the body or into the blood stream. Basal cell carcinoma does spread on the skin and can become quite large over time. If left untreated, it can spread to the muscles, nerves, bones, brain, and in rare cases, cause death.

Can nodular basal cell carcinoma spread?

Very rarely, basal cell carcinoma can spread (metastasize) to nearby lymph nodes and other areas of the body, such as the bones and lungs.

What does micronodular basal cell carcinoma of skin look like?

Micronodular BCC of Skin is a slow-growing malignant tumor. The tumor is a typical skin lesion that has a nodular appearance The surface of the nodule may be red, if intact. Else, it may appear as an ulcer, if the surface is eroded

Who is at risk for nodular basal cell carcinoma of skin?

This condition is observed worldwide across all racial and ethnic groups; however, lighter-skinned individuals (especially Caucasians) are more prone to Nodular BCC of Skin than darker-skinned individuals (such as Asians, Africans, etc.) What are the Risk Factors for Nodular Basal Cell Carcinoma of Skin?

What does infiltrative nodular basal cell carcinoma mean?

Although nodular BCCs are invasive carcinomas, the term infiltrative is generally applied to describe a tumor with less of a solid nodular growth pattern (or none of it) and a predominance of small often irregularly shaped cell aggregates, narrow strands of cells, multiple micronodules, or even single cells in the stroma.

How are basaloid tumors different from morpheaform BCC?

The superficial type of BCC shows multifocal small nests of basaloid tumor cells budding off the epidermis and adnexa. Morpheaform BCC is different in that strands of tumor cells are embedded in a dense fibrous tissue stroma. These strands often extend into the deeper dermis.