EPIDERMAL CYST

Multiple epidermal cysts may be a feature of Gardner syndrome. Gardner syndrome, caused by mutations in the adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) gene, is a rare, inherited, autosomal dominant trait characterized by multiple epidermal cysts and pilomatricomas, soft-tissue proliferations (fibromatosis, lipomas, leiomyomas), multiple craniofacial osteomas, bilateral pigmented ocular fundus lesions (congenital hypertrophy of the retinal epithelium), and intestinal (colorectal) polyposis. If intestinal polyposis is undetected or untreated, virtually all patients develop colonic carcinoma at a young age. The cutaneous cysts frequently predate the intestinal polyps.