Squamous Cell Carcinoma in HIV/AIDS.

Since the 1980s, the number of patients presenting with squamous cell carcinoma of the conjunctiva has been increasing exponentially. 1,2 In ophthalmic outpatient clinics in Harare, at least two of every one hundred patients have squamous cell carcinoma. The patients vary in age from eighteen to sixty years with the majority between twenty and forty years. Both males and females are affected. Often, the squamous cell carcinoma of the conjunctiva may be the only manifestation in an otherwise healthy looking adult. A large number of ill-looking patients may also present with the conjunctival carcinoma, in addition to other stigmata of immunosuppression, such as dryness and increased pigmentation of the skin of the face. Some patients have molluscum contagiosum lesions on the lids and forehead.