In basal cell carcinoma (BCC) – colloquially known as basal cell carcinoma – (synonyms: basal cell carcinoma (BCC); basal cell epithelioma; basal cell epithelioma, basal cell epithelioma; basalioma rodens; basalioma sclerodermiforme; basalioma terebrans; basal cell carcinoma; basal cell epithelioma; baslioma; epithelioma basocellulare; pigmented basalioma; pigmented basal cell carcinoma; ICD-10-GM C44. -: Other malignant neoplasms of the skin) is a form of skin cancer that originates in the basalis of the skin (basal cell layer of the skin) and the root sheaths of the hair follicles.
BCC grows locally infiltrating and destroying (destroying); metastasis (formation of daughter tumors) is very rare.
Basal cell carcinomas, together with squamous cell carcinomas, are also known as “white skin cancer“.
Basal cell carcinoma belongs to the non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC).
Basal cell carcinoma, spinocellular carcinoma and actinic keratoses as in situ carcinomas are increasingly also called keratinocytic carcinomas (KC).
It is the most common malignant (malignant) tumor in fair-skinned humans.
Sex ratio: Predominantly males with an average age of 60 years with a marked tendency to manifest at an earlier age
Frequency peak: The maximum incidence of basal cell carcinoma is around the age of 60; increasingly occurs also in younger patients (less than 40 years)
The prevalence (disease frequency) is 0.1 % in Germany.
The incidence (frequency of new cases) is over 200 cases per 100,000 inhabitants per year (in Germany, Switzerland and Italy); 170 in the USA and > 800 in Australia (in each case based on 100,000 inhabitants per year). Basal cell carcinoma is thus the most frequent cancer in humans.
Course and prognosis: Basal cell carcinoma occurs mainly in the head and neck area, 80% in the face (predilection sites). It metastasizes (formation of daughter tumors) very rarely (0.003-0.55%), but occurs more frequently in multiples. Prognosis is usually good. The cure rate for non-metastatic basal cell carcinoma is > 90%. If left untreated, basal cell carcinoma grows infiltratively (invading, displacing), i.e., from the skin into adjacent tissues and bone and cartilage.Surgical therapy is almost always the first line of treatment. In surgically treated patients, the therapeutic goal is a 5-year recurrence-free period in 95% of cases. After therapy, regular follow-up care by the dermatologist is of primary importance. Recurrence (recurrence of the disease) usually occurs in the first three years after treatment.
