Development of Bilateral Lower Extremity Marjolin Ulcers After Childhood Burns
Jason Tank, BS, Tom Scharschmidt, MD, and Scott D. Weiner, MD
Mr. Tank is Medical Student, Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine, Rootstown, Ohio.
Dr. Scharschmidt is Resident, and Dr. Weiner is Chair, Department of Orthopaedics, Summa Health System, Akron, Ohio.
Abstract not available. Introduction provided instead.
A Marjolin ulcer is a carcinoma, usually squamous cell, that originates in a chronically irritated or traumatized area, most commonly secondary to a deep tissue burn. The cancer is commonly aggressive and carries with it a poorer prognosis than a traditional squamous cell carcinoma does.1 The lesion commonly presents unilaterally with localized pain, foul-smelling discharge, and hemorrhage usually on the extremities or trunk, often with a time lag of decades from initial injury to malignancy.2 In a literature search, we identified only 2 instances of bilateral presentation. In this report, we describe a rare clinical case of bilateral lower extremity Marjolin ulcers and detail the common clinical presentation, treatment options, and prognosis of this aggressive carcinoma.