par Gompel, Claude 
;Horanyi, Zoltan ;Simonet, M.L.
Référence Acta cytologica, 20, 3, page (262-265)
Publication Publié, 1976
;Horanyi, Zoltan ;Simonet, M.L.Référence Acta cytologica, 20, 3, page (262-265)
Publication Publié, 1976
Article révisé par les pairs
| Résumé : | A 27 yr old female was admitted for an investigation of a vaginal tumor. On examination, a lesion measuring 9 x 6 x 5 cm extending to the lower portion of the exocervix was noted. A biopsy demonstrated a clear cell adenocarcinoma. There was no history of maternal medication. Radical hysterectomy and upper half vaginectomy were performed. Electron microscopic observations, limited to the carcinoma cells, confirmed descriptions previously published. The striking feature of this case was the presence of vesicular aggregates in a large proportion of the nuclei. These aggregates consisted of vesicles measuring from 600 Å to 850 Å in diameter and characterized by a single, smooth membrane. The aggregates were located in the nucleoplasm, in the perinuclear cytoplasm or were enclosed between the two membranes of the nuclear envelope. The number of these structures varied in different nuclei. This seems to be the first description of vesicular aggregates in a malignant tumor of the female genital tract. Previous reports of ultrastructural studies of the vaginal clear cell carcinoma do not mention this morphologic entity. In this case (no maternal medication) the patient was taking sequential oral contraceptives for more than 12 mth at the time of surgery. This very specific hyperplasia of the cellular membrane system may represent an abnormal response to oral progestational steroids combined with estrogen. In the ovary, where these cells have been described, the high hormonal activity of pregnancy may be responsible for this ultrastructural modification. |
