Key result
Prior herpes zoster linked to cutaneous angiosarcoma in the same dermatome, suggesting viral pathogenesis.
Case Report (n=1)
This case report highlights a potential link between prior herpes zoster infection and the subsequent development of cutaneous angiosarcoma, emphasizing the need for thorough histologic evaluation of suspicious head and neck lesions.
No change to post-zoster surveillance warranted; leaves open viral pathogenesis hypothesis for cutaneous angiosarcoma.
A 57-year-old woman presented with an erythematous plaque of the left postauricular area that was diagnosed as metastatic carcinoma on clinical and histologic bases. It was revealed that herpes zoster had been diagnosed in the same dermatomal distribution 10 years previously. The lesion recurred 2 years after irradiation, and angiosarcoma was diagnosed. Recent evidence linking viral infection and vascular tumors is examined as it might apply to the pathogenesis of angiosarcoma. Repeat biopsy, reticulum stain, and electronmicroscopic examination of a lesion of the head and neck region that histologically suggests metastatic carcinoma are recommended if no primary malignancy is discovered.
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Hudson et al. (1984) conducted a case report in Cutaneous angiosarcoma (n=1). Herpes zoster infection was evaluated on Development of cutaneous angiosarcoma. A 57-year-old woman developed cutaneous angiosarcoma in the exact dermatomal distribution where herpes zoster had been diagnosed 10 years previously, suggesting a potential viral pathogenesis.
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