Korean J Dermatol.
2003 Jul;41(7):976-979.
A Case of Sister Mary Joseph's Nodule
- Affiliations
-
- 1Department of Dermatology, Sanggye Paik Hospital, Inje University College of Medicine, Korea. cdk270@sanggyepaik.ac.kr
- 2UniSeoul Dermatologic Clinic, Seoul, Korea.
Abstract
- A metastatic umbilical carcinoma from internal malignancy is known as Sister Mary Joseph's nodule. A 56-year-old man presented with a progressively enlarging umbilical nodule. Skin biopsy was done and the patient was diagnosed as metastatic adenocarcinoma of umbilicus. Search for the primary tumor revealed gastric adenocarcinoma with metastasis to perigastric lymph node, portal vein and intrahepatic duct. Sister Mary Joseph's nodule, a rare form of cutaneous metastasis, generally carries very poor prognosis. We describe a case of Sister Mary Joseph's nodule preceding a diagnosis of gastric cancer with review of the literature, and emphasize the importance of careful evaluation of any umbilical nodule.
