A case of retro-auricular panfolliculoma mimicking basal cell carcinoma: A rare adnexal tumor with a review of the literature

Key clinical message: A rare case of slow-growing retro-auricular panfolliculoma is presented. The lesion was biopsied to rule out basal cell carcinoma but histopathology revealed a follicular tumor with differentiation toward all segments of the hair follicle. Panfolliculoma is a benign follicular tumor with no report of recurrence after surgical excision and no malignant transformation of the previously reported cases.

Abstract: Panfolliculoma is a rare slow growing adnexal tumor, characterized by differentiation toward all parts of the hair follicle including the infundibulum, isthmus, stem, and bulbs. Clinically this adnexal tumor may mimick basal cell carcinoma and other adnexal neoplasm including trichoblastoma and trichoepithelioma. In this study, we present a rare case of slow-growing retro-auricular panfolliculoma of a 70-year-old female mimicking basal cell carcinoma that was successfully excised without recurrence.