Page views in 2024 to date: 3
30 April 2014 - Case #310

All cases are archived on our website. To view them sorted by case number, diagnosis or category, visit our main Case of the Month page. To subscribe or unsubscribe to Case of the Month or our other email lists, click here.

Thanks to Dr. Raul Gonzalez, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Tennessee (USA), for contributing this case.


   

ThermoBrite® Elite

Automated FISH Slide Processing

Standardize your slide preparation and increase productivity with the ThermoBrite® Elite.

  • Just load slides, press start and walk away
  • Dewax, Pretreat, Denature/Hybridize and Post Wash inline on same instrument
  • Useful for Histology (FFPE), Cytology, Hematology and Cytogenetics applications
  • Bench top Class 1 IVD, CE marked
  • Flexible, open system allows laboratory choice of probe, reagent, protocol

Advertisement


Website news:

(1) We added these topics to the Stains and Molecular Markers chapter: claudin5, an endothelial tight junction protein whose downregulation is associated with various leakage syndromes and has strong membranous expression in pancreatic solid pseudopapillary neoplasm, and TREM1 / CD354, which amplifies immune responses that promote pro-inflammatory cytokine production, and is associated with bacterial infection and sepsis.

Visit and follow our Blog to see recent updates to the website.



Case #310

Clinical history:
A 49 year old woman presented with a 2 cm laryngeal mass, which was biopsied.

Microscopic images:




What is your diagnosis?

Click here for diagnosis and discussion:


Diagnosis: Low grade myofibroblastic sarcoma of the larynx

Immunostains:

Desmin

Smooth muscle actin



Discussion:
Low grade myofibroblastic sarcoma, also called low grade myofibrosarcoma, is a rare, low to intermediate grade tumor composed predominantly of malignant myofibroblasts (Am J Surg Pathol 1998;22:1228). It typically occurs in the head and neck (tongue and oral cavity) and extremities and rarely in the mesentery and the pelvic peritoneum (J Clin Pathol 2008;61:301). Several cases have recently been reported in the larynx (J Cancer Res Ther 2013;9:284, J Int Med Res 2011;39:311, Int J Surg Pathol 2011;19:822).

Microscopically, it is circumscribed to diffusely infiltrative with fascicles or storiform growth of spindled tumor cells. Cells have ill defined, pale eosinophilic cytoplasm, fusiform nuclei that are either elongated or wavy with evenly distributed chromatin or round and vesicular with indentations and small nucleoli. There is usually at least focal nuclear atypia with hyperchromasia and irregular nuclear membranes. The stroma is collagenous with prominent hyalinization and numerous thin walled capillaries may be present. There are no histiocytic giant cells or prominent inflammation. Mitotic activity is 1 - 6 mitoses/10 HPF. Immunostains are helpful for diagnosis. At least one myogenic marker is positive and tumor cells are negative for h-caldesmon. Electron microscopy shows myofibroblastic features of indented and clefted nuclei, variable rough endoplasmic reticulum, discontinuous basal lamina and fibronexus junctions (Ultrastruct Pathol 2008;32:97, Int J Surg Pathol 2013;21:29).

The differential diagnosis is broad and includes numerous neoplastic fibroblastic and myofibroblastic lesions, as discussed in low grade myofibroblastic sarcoma, as well as nodular fasciitis. It is not an ALK+ tumor, unlike inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor (Hum Pathol 2008;39:846).

After excision, low grade myofibroblastic sarcoma commonly recurs but only rarely metastasizes.


Image 01 Image 02