Cutaneous metastasis of pleural mesothelioma: two cases

INTRODUCTION: Cutaneous manifestations of pleural mesothelioma are rare, polymorphic, and occur at various stages of the disease. CASE REPORTS: Case 1. A 60 year-old man, 6 months after the initial diagnosis of a pleural mesothelioma, developed a right latero-thoracic subcutaneous nodule. The lesion resulted from an inoculation of tumoral cells to the wall at the time of the initial thoracoscopy. No specific treatment was proposed. Case 2. A 62 year-old man, with a history of pleural mesothelioma developed an inflammatory layer of the left chest wall. The lesion, laid out like an hemi-belt, was centred by the thoracotomy scar and was associated with retraction phenomena of the thoracic wall. The lesion corresponded to a direct extension of the mesothelioma to the wall. At the same time, the pleural disease was progressing. The patient died a few weeks later. COMMENTS: Cutaneous manifestations usually occur when the diagnosis of primitive pleural cancer has been already established. Distant cutaneous metastases are exceptional and involve with predilection the cephalic extremity. The majority of cutaneous lesions are distributed near the tumoral site and represent either a direct extension of the tumor to the thoracic wall, or a malignant seeding by diffusion of the pleural fluid at the time of the diagnostic and therapeutic procedures.