Sebaceous gland ectopia of the esophagus: A clinical, endoscopic, and pathologic study of a rare condition with literature review

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

7-8-2025

Publication Title

Annals of diagnostic pathology

Abstract

Sebaceous gland ectopia (SGE) is a disorder in which sebaceous gland lobules appear in atypical anatomical locations. Sebaceous glands are normally found in the skin, particularly abundant on the face, scalp and other areas with hair follicles. SGE in the esophagus is an extremely rare, benign condition that morphologically may mimic epidermoid metaplasia due to the presence of excretory duct, lined by keratinized squamous epithelium. We present a retrospective case series of patients with evidence of SGE per endoscopic biopsy tissue analysis between 2000 and 2025. A total of 12 biopsy analyses from 10 patients were included: 7 women (70 %) and 3 men (30 %). The mean age at diagnosis was 63 years. There were 7 patients who reported previous or current alcohol use (70 %); one patient reported previous tobacco use (10 %). Gastrointestinal reflux disease, the most common clinical indication, was seen in six patients (60 %). The lesions, when visible on endoscopy, were located in the proximal and/or mid esophagus (100 %); three endoscopies noted no lesions (25 %). Two repeat biopsies in one patient showed persistent SGE. No biopsies showed dysplasia (0 %). Additionally, we performed a literature review of articles in the PubMed database, identifying 65 other reported patients. The clinicopathologic findings in this study add additional evidence on this rare entity.

Medical Subject Headings

Humans; Male; Female; Middle Aged; Sebaceous Glands; Retrospective Studies; Aged; Choristoma; Esophagus; Biopsy; Esophageal Diseases; Adult; Esophagoscopy

PubMed ID

40684708

Volume

79

First Page

152529

Last Page

152529

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