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Background: Mast cells (MCs) have recently been implicated in lymphocytic scarring alopecias, which may share a common pathogenesis. MCs in central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA) have not been studied., Objective: We looked for the presence of MCs in CCCA using 2 different stains to see if their numbers correlated with the number of hair follicles, the degree of inflammation and perifollicular fibrosis, disease duration and severity, and patient symptoms., Methods: We performed a retrospective review of biopsies of patients diagnosed with CCCA, tabulated MC counts and correlated them with histopathologic and clinical findings., Results: MC counts were significantly greater using immunoperoxidase staining with CD117 than Giemsa stain, and more were present when the isthmus level was included with the infundibulum. MC counts with CD117 immunostain significantly correlated with the degree of inflammation. MC counts with both stains were significantly associated with the degree of fibrosis independently and after controlling for other factors., Limitations: The study was limited by insufficient tissue remaining in a small number of the transversely cut blocks., Conclusion: Our findings may have therapeutic implications for CCCA and other types of lymphocytic scarring alopecia., Competing Interests: None disclosed., (© 2023 by the American Academy of Dermatology, Inc. Published by Elsevier Inc.)

Background: Chemical hair relaxers, use of which is highly prevalent among Black women in the US, have been inconsistently linked to risk of estrogen-dependent cancers, such as breast cancer, and other reproductive health conditions. Whether hair relaxer use increases risk of uterine cancer is unknown., Methods: In the Black Women's Health Study, 44,798 women with an intact uterus who self-identified as Black were followed from 1997, when chemical hair relaxer use was queried, until 2019. Over follow-up, 347 incident uterine cancers were diagnosed. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models, adjusted for age and other potential confounders, to estimate hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for associations of hair relaxer use with risk of uterine cancer., Results: Compared to women who never used hair relaxers or used them infrequently (<4 years and ≤1-2 times/year), the HR for uterine cancer associated with heavy use (≥15 years and at least 5 times/year) was 1.18 (95% CI: 0.81, 1.71). However, among postmenopausal women, compared to never/light use, the HR for moderate use was 1.60 (95% CI: 1.01, 2.53), the HR for heavy use was 1.64 (1.01, 2.64), and the HR for ≥20 years of use regardless of frequency was 1.71 (1.08, 2.72). Results among premenopausal women were null., Conclusions: In this large cohort of Black women, long-term use of chemical hair relaxers was associated with increased risk of uterine cancer among postmenopausal women, but not among premenopausal women. These findings suggest that hair relaxer use may be a potentially modifiable risk factor for uterine cancer., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Hair relaxers and leave-in conditioners and oils, commonly used by Black/African American women, may contain estrogens or estrogen-disrupting compounds. Thus, their use may contribute to breast cancer risk. Results of the few previous studies on this topic are inconsistent. We assessed the relation of hair relaxer and leave-in conditioner use to breast cancer incidence in the Black Women's Health Study, a nationwide prospective study of Black women. Among 50 543 women followed from 1997 to 2017, 2311 incident breast cancers occurred. Multivariable-adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) were calculated using Cox proportional hazards regression for breast cancer overall and by estrogen receptor (ER) status. For heavy use (≥15 years of use for ≥7 times/year) of hair relaxers relative to never/light use (<4 years, no more than 1-2 times/year), the multivariable HR for breast cancer overall was 1.13 (95%CI: 0.96-1.33). Duration, frequency, age at first use and number of scalp burns were not associated with overall breast cancer risk. For heavy use of hair relaxers containing lye, the corresponding HR for ER+ breast cancer was 1.32 (95% CI: 0.97, 1.80); there was no association for non-lye products. There was no association of conditioner use and breast cancer. Results of this study were largely null, but there was some evidence that heavy use of lye-containing hair relaxers may be associated with increased risk of ER+ breast cancer. Consistent results from several studies are needed before it can be concluded that use of certain hair relaxers impacts breast cancer development., (© The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

With the exception of skin cancer, prostatic adenocarcinoma represents the most common cancer among men in the United States and the second most common cause of cancer mortality. Mortality is often associated with metastatic disease, which in the case of prostatic adenocarcinoma typically involves bones and only rarely affects the skin. Although clinical history and examination, laboratory tests and routine pathology can suggest the prostate as a source of metastatic disease, immunohistochemistry - specifically, for prostate-specific antigen (PSA) - is often used to help establish the diagnosis. We report a case of cutaneous metastatic prostatic adenocarcinoma presenting in the inguinal region of a 78-year-old man 5 years after his initial diagnosis. The case is unusual in that the clinical appearance mimicked a vascular proliferation and in that the metastatic prostatic adenocarcinoma failed to express PSA. Rather, expression of prostatic acid phosphatase was observed., (Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons A/S.)

Temporal triangular alopecia (TTA) is a type of alopecia that is often congenital, and clinically exhibits hair loss on one or both temples. It is characterized histologically by a normal number of small hair follicles without significant inflammation. We report a patient with TTA whose biopsy exhibited a decreased number of hair follicles. There are limited reports of the histopathology of TTA, and most have utilized standard vertical sections. Of the handful of patients with transversely sectioned biopsies, follicular numbers have been reportedly normal. Our finding of a patient with TTA with a decreased number of hair follicles broadens the histologic spectrum of this disorder, and may have implications for pathogenesis.

Dissecting cellulitis of the scalp (DCS) is a suppurative, neutrophillic dermatosis. Therapies typically provide short-term improvement and include antibiotics, prednisone, and isotretinoin, as well as radiation, surgical excision, and laser ablation. The authors report the use of the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) blocker, adalimumab, to successfully treat a 39-year-old male with a long-standing history of DCS.