Pigmented Bowen’s disease presenting clinically as longitudinal melanonychia

Abstract

Bowen’s disease (BD) is a squamous cell carcinoma, which affects more the elderly population and is more prevalent in light-skinned individuals. It affects most frequently sun-exposed areas and generally manifests as a single erythematous, scaly, or crusted plaque, with irregular growth and generally precise limits. Its pigmented variant is less frequent and the nail localization is even more atypical. The gold-standard treatment is surgical excision with safety margins. This report presents a case of pigment BD, in a female patient, on the fifth toe of the right foot, manifesting as longitudinal melanonychia (ML). The lesion had been present for a few years but there was recent darkening. The objective of the work is to raise awareness of the importance of BD as a differential diagnosis of longitudinal ML and to highlight the importance of histopathological studies for diagnostic confirmation.

Keywords

• Bowen's disease. Squamous cell carcinoma. Epithelial and glandular. Neoplasms.