Background: At present, there exists considerable clinical uncertainty regarding the role of radiologic imaging in the staging and management of high-risk cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (hrSCC).
Objective: The authors sought to investigate the clinical and pathologic features predictive of bony invasion, perineural invasion, or lymphadenopathy in patients that had undergone head and neck imaging for hrSCC.
Materials and methods: The authors conducted a single-center retrospective chart review of patients (n = 82) that had undergone head and neck imaging for hrSCC.
Results: Twenty-nine percent (24/82) of patients in the study had positive findings on radiologic imaging. Immunocompromised patients were more likely to have the radiologic finding of lymphadenopathy (p = .04). Tumor size was found to correlate with the radiologic finding of bony invasion (correlation coefficient = 0.40, p = .0002). There was no relationship between either high risk location or high risk histopathology and positive radiologic findings. The low number of patients and its retrospective nature are study limitations.
Conclusion: The clinical features of host immunosuppression and tumor size are predictive of positive imaging findings in hrSCC. The decision to perform radiologic imaging in patients with hrSCC may be influenced by these factors, but continue to be more firmly guided by physical exam and clinical suspicion.