Primary squamous cell carcinoma of the peristomal skin of gastrostomy in a transplant patient: a first case report

Abstract

Gastrostomy is commonly used to provide enteral nutrition when patient require a nutrition support due to not enough oral eating. Gastrostomy tube can lead to many complications; squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) is an extremely rare complication of the site of gastrostomy, it was described after several years of enteral nutrition or as part of a metastasis of head and neck tumors. We describe the case of a 60-year-old man heart-liver transplanted for hereditary amyloidosis. He required the setting of a gastrostomy-tube for enteral feeding and developed after only 18 months a SCC on the site of gastrostomy confirmed in the histologic report. The increased risk of SCC in transplant patients is due to immunosuppressive therapies, even though everolimus could reduce this risk. The pose of a gastrostomy is responsible of a chronic cutaneous inflammation, which is another risk factor for SCC. In these immunocompromised patients, gastrostomy or other chronic skin injury requires special monitoring, especially if the wound does not heal.