Purpose: Sebaceous carcinoma of the eyelid is a potentially fatal malignancy that has been associated with p53 gene mutations. The purpose of this study is to determine the frequency of p53 mutations in sebaceous carcinoma of the eyelid and to determine whether there is any relationship between the presence of p53 mutations and tumor invasiveness.
Methods: Retrospective case series. Fourteen samples of sebaceous carcinoma that had been resected from Caucasian patients between 1994 and 2010 were analyzed for p53 gene mutations with PCR and Sequencher software. Patient charts were reviewed to draw clinicopathologic correlations in relation with the presence of p53 gene mutations.
Results: Seven of 14 (50%) sebaceous carcinoma samples were found to have p53 gene mutations. None of the samples had tandem mutations, which are caused by UV exposure. No statistically significant trend was found between the presence of p53 mutations and metastasis, recurrence, tumor size, TNM stage, and pagetoid spread. There was a similar frequency of p53 gene mutations found in stage T1, T2, and T3 tumors.
Conclusions: p53 Mutations are found in a high percentage of sebaceous carcinomas in the Caucasian population. The absence of tandem mutations is consistent with the belief that sebaceous carcinoma develops as a UV-independent process. There does not appear to be a significant correlation between the presence of p53 mutations and tumor size, recurrence, metastasis, pagetoid spread, or location. The similar frequency of p53 mutations in both low- and high-stage tumors implies that p53 gene mutations may be involved in early stages of carcinogenesis of sebaceous carcinoma.