Histopathology of Common Cutaneous Adnexal Neoplasms with Special Reference to The Line of Differentiation – 3 Year Institutional Study in Northeast India

Background: Cutaneous adnexal neoplasms comprise a wide spectrum of benign and malignant tumors that exhibit morphological differentiation towards one or more types of adnexal structures found in normal skin. Most adnexal neoplasms are relatively uncommonly encountered in routine practice, and only a limited number of frequently encountered tumors can be identified. Syndromic associations may be seen in some of the tumors. The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence and histopathological features of different skin adnexal neoplasms according to line of differentiation. Material and Methods: It is a 3-year prospective cross-sectional study done in a tertiary care center of north east India. All total 110 cases were studied. Patients of all age groups and both sexes who have given consent are included and inadequately preserved specimens, Improper clinical record (History and examination) patients who do not give consent were excluded from the study. Results: Skin adnexal tumours were identified in 110 patients, with follicular differentiation accounting for 37.33% of the tumours, sweat gland differentiation for 33.11%, and sebaceous differentiation for 29.56%. The ratio of males to females was 1.03:1, with ages ranging from 5 to 85. Only 15.5% of the tumours were malignant; the majority, 84.4%, were benign. The most common benign tumour was pilomatricoma (22/110, or 20%), while the most common malignant tumour was sebaceous carcinoma (17/110, or 15.45%). Conclusion: Skin adnexal tumors are rare, accurate diagnosis through specialized pathology is crucial due to potential malignancy and syndrome links.

Keywords: Skin adnexal tumors, Histopathology, Benign, Malignant.