A 64-year-old woman, who has always been proud of her suntanned, healthy look, is referred to a dermatologist with a blue-violet, painless, 1.5 -cm lump in the skin of her left shoulder. The lump is firm and cannot be moved, and has grown very rapidly over the past few weeks. The mass is removed surgically and the pathologist diagnoses it as a Merkel cell carcinoma. If the UV radiation to which her skin was exposed affected the Merkel cells, what other cell type sharing the same specific epidermal layer might also be affected?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Merkel cells and basal stem cells for keratinocytes are both located in the stratum basale of the epidermis, so UV radiation affecting Merkel cells could also affect these basal stem cells.

A 64-Year-Old Woman, Who Has Always Been Proud of Her