Yonago Acta medica 2011;54:033–036
Squamous Cell Carcinoma Derived from a Skin Flap Used for Reconstruction of the Hypopharynx
Aigo Yamasaki, Nobuya Monden, Teruaki Takishita, Yasuhiko Yamashita, Tohru Ishikawa, Norihiro Teramoto* and Hiroya Kitano†
Department of Head and Neck Surgery and *Department of Pathology, Shikoku Cancer Center, Matsuyama 791-0280 and †Division of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Department of Medicine of Sensory and Motor Organs, School of Medicine, Tottori University Faculty of Medicine, Yonago 683-8504, Japan
Development of a secondary primary cancer in a skin flap is a rare complication. A 70-year-old man underwent partial laryngopharyngectomy, right neck dissection and reconstruction with a radial forearm free flap in 2004. Five years later, an exophytic tumor was found on the hypopharynx reconstructed with the radial forearm free flap. He underwent total laryngopharyngectomy, left neck dissection and reconstruction with a jejunal free flap in June 2009. Pathological findings suggested this was a primary cancer rather than a metastasis. Localization to the epidermis and dermis indicate that the tumor was derived from the surface of the skin flap.
Key words: flap; hypopharynx; secondary primary cancer; squamous cell carcinoma
