Unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin of ear and external auricular canal

Not billableICD-10-CM diagnosis code.

This code exists but cannot be submitted on its own. It groups the more specific codes beneath it.

A category header for its whole life, FY2016 onwards. It has never been valid for submission on its own.

Submit one of these 3 more specific codes instead:

C44.201 Unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin of unspecified ear and external auricular canal
C44.202 Unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin of right ear and external auricular canal
C44.209 Unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin of left ear and external auricular canal

What has happened to this code

Every change the publisher made, from 2007 to now. Entries marked draft are from the pre-implementation releases: ICD-10 took effect on 1 October 2015, so nothing before FY2016 was ever valid on a claim.

FY2007 Added to the draft code set draft Malignant neoplasm of skin of ear and external auricular canal, unspecified side
FY2011 Draft description revised draft ~~Malignant neoplasm of skin of ear and external auricular canal, unspecified side~~ Malignant neoplasm of skin of unspecified ear and external auricular canal
FY2012 Draft description revised draft ~~Malignant neoplasm of skin of unspecified ear and external auricular canal~~ Unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin of ear and external auricular canal

Official coding rules

Published by CDC for FY2027. A rule attached to a category binds every code beneath it, so the rules inherited from this code's ancestors are shown with the code they come from.

Inherited from C44 Other and unspecified malignant neoplasm of skin

Excludes1 - never coded here

Kaposi's sarcoma of skin (C46.0)
malignant melanoma of skin (C43.-)
malignant neoplasm of skin of genital organs (C51-C52, C60.-, C63.2)
Merkel cell carcinoma (C4A.-)

Includes

malignant neoplasm of sebaceous glands
malignant neoplasm of sweat glands

How CDC's index refers to this code

Wording from the official alphabetic index. Much of it appears nowhere in the code description, which is why a search for the everyday phrase so often finds nothing.

Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear
Neoplasm, neoplastic > helix
Neoplasm, neoplastic > concha
Neoplasm, neoplastic > tragus
Neoplasm, neoplastic > earlobe
Neoplasm, neoplastic > pinna NEC
Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear > skin
Neoplasm, neoplastic > auricle, ear
Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear > lobule
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > ear
Neoplasm, neoplastic > auricular canal
Neoplasm, neoplastic > meatus external
Neoplasm, neoplastic > auditory > canal
Neoplasm, neoplastic > canal > auditory
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > helix
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > pinna
Neoplasm, neoplastic > canal > auricular
Neoplasm, neoplastic > external > meatus
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > concha
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > tragus
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > auricle
Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear > canal, external
Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear > external meatus
Neoplasm, neoplastic > ear > auricle or auris
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > auditory canal
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > auricular canal
Neoplasm, neoplastic > skin NOS > meatus, acoustic

Codes in the same group

Code	Description	Status
C44.21	Basal cell carcinoma of skin of ear and external auricular canal	Not billable
C44.22	Squamous cell carcinoma of skin of ear and external auricular canal	Not billable
C44.29	Other specified malignant neoplasm of skin of ear and external auricular canal	Not billable