Verrucous carcinoma of the genital tract: is it a distinct entity?

Between 1974 and 1985, 16 patients (7 men, 9 women) with a diagnosis of genital verrucous carcinoma were identified from the cancer registry of the Tom Baker Cancer Centre in Calgary. All the men had lesions on the penis. In the women, five lesions were on the vulva, four were on the cervix and two were on the vagina (two women each had two involved sites). The histologic slides from the surgically excised specimens were reviewed, and, by applying strict criteria, all cases could be reclassified as giant condyloma (five cases), intraepithelial neoplasia with or without condylomatous features (eight cases) or invasive squamous cell carcinoma (five cases). The authors believe that, in genital lesions associated with the human papillomavirus, a diagnosis of verrucous carcinoma is nonspecific and may lead to inappropriate clinical management.