ADENOMA:EPITHELIOMA


Both adenomas & epitheliomas represent relatively common benign neoplastic proliferations of sebaceous (meibomian) glandular tissue. Adenomas generally exhibit histological evidence of glandular differentiation, whereas epitheliomas generally do not, however some degree of histological “overlap” occurs. Both lesions typically appear as pink to grey, firm irregular & proliferative eyelid masses arising from the eyelid margin (upper or lower) and display variable degrees of eyelid invasion. Small lesions (2-5mm) may be ablated using a CO2 laser, preserving eyelid margin function & form and frequently avoiding the need for surgical reconstruction. Larger lesions, however, require full thickness excision and accurate subsequent eyelid repair.