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Cancer Genomics & Proteomics 2022This study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological, prognostic and molecular characteristics of uterine mesonephric-like carcinosarcoma (MLCS).
Mesonephric-like Carcinosarcoma of the Uterine Corpus: Clinicopathological, Molecular and Prognostic Characteristics in Comparison With Uterine Mesonephric-like Adenocarcinoma and Conventional Endometrial Carcinosarcoma.
BACKGROUND/AIM
This study aimed to investigate the clinicopathological, prognostic and molecular characteristics of uterine mesonephric-like carcinosarcoma (MLCS).
PATIENTS AND METHODS
We collected clinical, pathological, and genetic information from 12 MLCS patients, and analyzed their differences from mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma (MLA) and conventional endometrial carcinosarcoma (CECS).
RESULTS
The epithelial component was exclusively MLA in all MLCS cases. Metastatic and recurrent tumors consisted predominantly or exclusively of MLA in the majority of MLCS cases. Patients with MLCS and MLA presented with more advanced-stage disease than those with CECS. They also exhibited post-treatment recurrence and lung metastases more frequently than CECS. Disease-free survival rates of MLCS and MLA were shorter than those of CECS. Tumor protein 53 gene mutations were detected in four MLCS cases.
CONCLUSION
The predominance or exclusive presence of MLA in metastatic and recurrent tumors highlights the possibility that MLA may determine the clinical outcomes of patients with MLCS. Further studies are required to provide direct molecular evidence of the monoclonal origin of uterine MLCS.
Topics: Female; Humans; Prognosis; Carcinosarcoma; Endometrial Neoplasms; Adenocarcinoma
PubMed: 36316041
DOI: 10.21873/cgp.20357 -
Frontiers in Cell and Developmental... 2021The conduits of life; the animal oviducts and human fallopian tubes are of paramount importance for reproduction in amniotes. They connect the ovary with the uterus and... (Review)
Review
The conduits of life; the animal oviducts and human fallopian tubes are of paramount importance for reproduction in amniotes. They connect the ovary with the uterus and are essential for fertility. They provide the appropriate environment for gamete maintenance, fertilization and preimplantation embryonic development. However, serious pathologies, such as ectopic pregnancy, malignancy and severe infections, occur in the oviducts. They can have drastic effects on fertility, and some are life-threatening. Despite the crucial importance of the oviducts in life, relatively little is known about the molecular drivers underpinning the embryonic development of their precursor structures, the Müllerian ducts, and their successive differentiation and maturation. The Müllerian ducts are simple rudimentary tubes comprised of an epithelial lumen surrounded by a mesenchymal layer. They differentiate into most of the adult female reproductive tract (FRT). The earliest sign of Müllerian duct formation is the thickening of the anterior mesonephric coelomic epithelium to form a placode of two distinct progenitor cells. It is proposed that one subset of progenitor cells undergoes partial epithelial-mesenchymal transition (pEMT), differentiating into immature Müllerian luminal cells, and another subset undergoes complete EMT to become Müllerian mesenchymal cells. These cells invaginate and proliferate forming the Müllerian ducts. Subsequently, pEMT would be reversed to generate differentiated epithelial cells lining the fully formed Müllerian lumen. The anterior Müllerian epithelial cells further specialize into the oviduct epithelial subtypes. This review highlights the key established molecular and genetic determinants of the processes involved in Müllerian duct development and the differentiation of its upper segment into oviducts. Furthermore, an extensive genome-wide survey of mouse knockout lines displaying Müllerian or oviduct phenotypes was undertaken. In addition to widely established genetic determinants of Müllerian duct development, our search has identified surprising associations between loss-of-function of several genes and high-penetrance abnormalities in the Müllerian duct and/or oviducts. Remarkably, these associations have not been investigated in any detail. Finally, we discuss future directions for research on Müllerian duct development and oviducts.
PubMed: 33763415
DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2021.605301 -
Archives of Pathology & Laboratory... Jan 2020Female adnexal tumor of probable Wolffian origin (FATWO) is an extremely rare gynecologic neoplasm of low malignant potential. Fewer than 90 cases of this entity have... (Review)
Review
CONTEXT.—
Female adnexal tumor of probable Wolffian origin (FATWO) is an extremely rare gynecologic neoplasm of low malignant potential. Fewer than 90 cases of this entity have been described in the English-language literature. It is presumed to be derived from mesonephric (Wolffian) duct remnants in the upper female genital tract. We provide a literature review to increase awareness of this extremely uncommon entity.
OBJECTIVES.—
To review the clinical and pathologic findings of FATWO and to discuss common entities in the differential diagnosis.
DATA SOURCES.—
The study involved PubMed (National Center for Biotechnology Information, Bethesda, Maryland) searches, including multiple review articles, case reports, retrospective studies, selected book chapters, and University of Mississippi Medical Center cases.
CONCLUSIONS.—
FATWO can affect patients from a wide age range and present with a nonspecific clinical presentation. It typically presents as solid tumors with occasional nodular, lobulated, or cystic appearances. FATWO can show a variety of histologic patterns which may result in diagnostic difficulties for pathologists. There is no single specific immunohistochemical stain for FATWO, and the pathogenesis and molecular alterations are not yet well understood. Although it is generally considered a benign entity, recurrent and metastatic cases have been reported. There are no current recommendations regarding the optimal clinical management of FATWO.
Topics: Adenoma; Adnexal Diseases; Female; Humans
PubMed: 31469585
DOI: 10.5858/arpa.2019-0152-RA -
Frontiers in Oncology 2022Mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma (MLA) is a recently characterized, rare, and aggressive neoplasm that mostly arises in the uterine corpus and ovary. MLA shows...
BACKGROUND
Mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma (MLA) is a recently characterized, rare, and aggressive neoplasm that mostly arises in the uterine corpus and ovary. MLA shows characteristic pathological features similar to mesonephric adenocarcinoma of the cervix. The origin of MLA is still controversial and recognition of it remains challenging for pathologists. The aim of this study was to enrich the clinicopathological features of MLA in the uterine corpus and explore its molecular alterations by targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS).
METHODS
Four cases of MLA were identified among a total of 398 endometrial carcinomas diagnosed in our institution between January 2014 and December 2021. Immunohistochemistry and targeted NGS spanning 437 cancer-relevant genes were performed.
RESULTS
The most common symptom was abnormal vaginal bleeding, and the average age was 68 years. Histologically, the tumors showed a mixture of varied growth patterns including papillary, glandular, tubular, cribriform, solid, and slit-like architectures, which were lined by columnar to cuboidal cells with overlapping vesicular nuclei and sometimes nuclear grooves. Intraluminal eosinophilic colloid-like secretions were focally evident in three of the four cases. Immunohistochemically, the MLAs were positive for GATA3 (4/4), TTF-1 (3/3), luminal CD10 (3/3), calretinin (2/3), and patchy P16 (3/3) and were negative for ER (0/4) and PR (0/4). The expression of P53 was "wild type" (4/4). By targeted NGS, 3/4 (75%), 2/4 (50%), and 1/4 (25%) cases harbored , , and mutations, respectively. None of the tumors had mutations in DNA mismatch repair genes, , , , , or . At the time of diagnosis, three were presented with FIGO IB stage and one with IIIC stage. Two patients received postoperative chemotherapy and radiotherapy and they were alive without evidence of disease at 8 and 56 months follow-up, respectively. One patient developed pulmonary metastasis 13 months after surgery and chemotherapy, and one was dead of the disease 24 months after the operation without adjuvant therapy.
CONCLUSIONS
MLA is a rare and aggressive malignancy, representing approximately 1% of all endometrial carcinomas. It exhibits mixed architectures associated with distinctive immunophenotype and recurrent and mutations, supporting classified as of Müllerian origin with mesonephric differentiation.
PubMed: 35865471
DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2022.911695 -
Applied Immunohistochemistry &... Sep 2020Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare gynecologic neoplasm commonly mistaken for clear cell carcinoma, because of their overlapping morphologic features. Both tumors are...
Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare gynecologic neoplasm commonly mistaken for clear cell carcinoma, because of their overlapping morphologic features. Both tumors are negative for estrogen receptor and p16, magnifying this diagnostic dilemma. Recently, hepatocyte nuclear factor-1 beta (HNF-1β), a marker for clear cell carcinoma, has also been shown to be positive in mesonephric carcinomas. Other more recent markers for clear cell carcinoma, however, such as Napsin-A and alpha-methylacyl-CoA racemase (AMACR), have not yet been studied in mesonephric carcinomas. Here we examine HNF-1β, AMACR, and Napsin-A immunohistochemistry in 18 mesonephric and 55 endometrial/cervical clear cell carcinomas. HNF-1β was considered positive if nuclear staining was present in ≥70% of cells and at least moderate intensity; for Napsin-A and AMACR, any cytoplasmic staining was considered positive (≥1%). H-scores were determined by multiplying the intensity score by proportion score. HNF-1β was positive in a substantial portion of mesonephric carcinomas (9/18, 50%; H-score 98) and clear cell carcinomas (34/55, 62%; H-score 163) and did not distinguish between the 2 entities (specificity, 50%; P-value of H-score=0.08). Napsin-A and AMACR expression was significantly higher in clear cell [43/55 (78%) and 41/55 (75%), respectively] than mesonephric carcinomas [4/18 (22%) and 4/18 (22%) respectively], and helpful in this differential (specificity: 78% and 78%; P<0.05 for both). When Napsin-A and AMACR staining were seen in mesonephric carcinomas, staining was focal (≤5%), whereas staining in clear cell carcinomas was patchy/diffuse. In summary, Napsin-A and AMACR are helpful in distinguishing mesonephric carcinomas from clear cell carcinomas of the female genital tract, but HNF-1β is not.
Topics: Adenocarcinoma, Clear Cell; Adult; Aged; Aspartic Acid Endopeptidases; Cohort Studies; Endometrial Neoplasms; Female; Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 1-beta; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Middle Aged; Neoplasm Staging; Racemases and Epimerases; Tissue Array Analysis; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms
PubMed: 31361605
DOI: 10.1097/PAI.0000000000000801 -
Gynecologic Oncology Reports Nov 2020Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare cancer that most often arises within the cervix, and less frequently, in the ovary and endometrium. A retrospective search of our...
Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare cancer that most often arises within the cervix, and less frequently, in the ovary and endometrium. A retrospective search of our CLIA-certified and CAP-accredited reference molecular laboratory database (Foundation Medicine, Inc.) identified 20 mesonephric or mesonephric-like, cervical (n = 10), endometrial (n = 5), ovarian (n = 4) or peri-bladder (n = 1) carcinomas that had undergone comprehensive genomic profiling via next generation sequencing. Activating mutations were present in 90%, 18 of 20 cases, including G12V (n = 7), G12D (n = 6), G12A (n = 3) and G12C (n = 2). Other recurrent alterations were identified in (25%), (20%), (15%), (10%), (10%) and (10%). One wild-type case had a mutation as the sole alteration, while the second wild-type case had an exon 20 insertion D770_N771insSVD alteration. All tumors were negative for HPV DNA, microsatellite instability, high tumor mutational burden and homologous recombination deficiency. A circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) liquid biopsy from peripheral blood, which was performed 6 years after original solid tumor resection in one patient with suspected lung metastasis, revealed concordance of alteration, gains of chromosomes 1q, 2, 10, 12 and 20, plus new alterations in the liquid biopsy compared to the original sample. G12 mutation is major driver of mesonephric and mesonephric-like carcinomas, with less frequent contribution by ARID1A and PIK3CA pathways in tumors of non-cervical origin. ctDNA liquid biopsy may be useful in detecting mutations in recurrent or metastatic patients, who may potentially be eligible for trials against emerging targeted therapies.
PubMed: 33024807
DOI: 10.1016/j.gore.2020.100652 -
Journal of Cancer Research and Clinical... Nov 2023Mesonephric-like adenocarcinomas (MLA) of the female genital tract represent a rare and relatively recently described neoplasm exhibiting characteristic morphologic and... (Review)
Review
Mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma of the female genital tract: possible role of KRAS-targeted treatment-detailed molecular analysis of a case series and review of the literature for targetable somatic KRAS-mutations.
PURPOSE
Mesonephric-like adenocarcinomas (MLA) of the female genital tract represent a rare and relatively recently described neoplasm exhibiting characteristic morphologic and immunohistochemical findings commonly associated with a KRAS-mutation. Most cases display an aggressive clinical behavior, but knowledge about treatment approaches is limited, especially for targeting KRAS.
METHODS
We report a series of eight cases with a detailed molecular analysis for KRAS. These cases as well as the data of previously published cases with detailed information regarding KRAS-mutational events were reviewed for a potential targeted approach and its prognostic impact.
RESULTS
Both the uterine and ovarian MLA harbor a somatic KRAS-mutation in about 85% of the reported cases, affecting the hotspot codons 12 and 13. 15.7% of the endometrial and 15.6% of ovarian MLA are wild type for KRAS. A p.G12A-alteration was seen in 5.6% (5/89) of the endometrial and in 6.2% (2/32) of the ovarian tumors, for p.G12C in 7.9% and 6.2%, for p.G12D in 32.6% and 34.5% and for p.G12V in 36% and 37.5%, respectively. Very limited data are available regarding the prognostic impact of different mutational sites within the KRAS-gene without significant prognostic impact.
CONCLUSION
Because of a specific p.G12C-KRAS somatic mutation, only the minority of MLA (7.9% with uterine and 6.2% with ovarian primary) are potentially targetable by sotarasib in that rare but aggressive subtype of adenocarcinoma of the female genital tract. Until now, the different location of a somatic KRAS-mutation is of no prognostic impact.
Topics: Humans; Female; Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras); Adenocarcinoma; Mutation; Prognosis; Genitalia, Female
PubMed: 37668797
DOI: 10.1007/s00432-023-05306-9 -
Differentiation; Research in Biological... 2021Estrogen has always been considered the female hormone and testosterone the male hormone. However, estrogen's presence in the testis and deleterious effects of estrogen...
Estrogen has always been considered the female hormone and testosterone the male hormone. However, estrogen's presence in the testis and deleterious effects of estrogen treatment during development have been known for nearly 90 years, long before estrogen receptors (ESRs) were discovered. Eventually it was learned that testes actually synthesize high levels of estradiol (E2) and sequester high concentrations in the reproductive tract lumen, which seems contradictory to the overwhelming number of studies showing reproductive pathology following exogenous estrogen exposures. For too long, the developmental pathology of estrogen has dominated our thinking, even resulting in the "estrogen hypothesis" as related to the testicular dysgenesis syndrome. However, these early studies and the development of an Esr1 knockout mouse led to a deluge of research into estrogen's potential role in and disruption of development and function of the male reproductive system. What is new is that estrogen action in the male cannot be divorced from that of androgen. This paper presents what is known about components of the estrogen pathway, including its synthesis and target receptors, and the need to achieve a balance between androgen- and estrogen-action in male reproductive tract differentiation and adult functions. The review focuses on what is known regarding development of the male reproductive tract, from the rete testis to the vas deferens, and examines the expression of estrogen receptors and presence of aromatase in the male reproductive system, traces the evidence provided by estrogen-associated knockout and transgenic animal models and discusses the effects of fetal and postnatal exposures to estrogens. Hopefully, there will be enough here to stimulate discussions and new investigations of the androgen:estrogen balance that seems to be essential for development of the male reproductive tract.
Topics: Androgens; Animals; Embryo, Mammalian; Embryonic Development; Epididymis; Estradiol; Estrogen Receptor alpha; Estrogens; Female; Genitalia, Male; Male; Mice; Mice, Knockout; Rete Testis; Testosterone
PubMed: 33441255
DOI: 10.1016/j.diff.2020.11.004 -
Cancer Genomics & Proteomics 2022Uterine mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma (MLA) is a rare malignant tumor of the female genital tract. (Review)
Review
Mesonephric-like Adenocarcinoma of the Uterine Corpus: Comprehensive Analyses of Clinicopathological, Molecular, and Prognostic Characteristics With Retrospective Review of 237 Endometrial Carcinoma Cases.
BACKGROUND/AIM
Uterine mesonephric-like adenocarcinoma (MLA) is a rare malignant tumor of the female genital tract.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
We reviewed 237 endometrial carcinoma cases and investigated the clinicopathological and molecular characteristics of uterine MLA.
RESULTS
We found that 3.0% (7/237) of the endometrial carcinoma cases were MLAs. Compared to endometrial endometrioid carcinoma, MLA showed larger tumor size, deeper myometrial invasion, increasingly advanced-stage disease, and more frequent lymphovascular space invasion. All MLAs exhibited architectural diversity, compactly aggregated small tubules, eosinophilic intraluminal secretions, overlapped and angulated nuclei, scant cytoplasm, and presence of spindle cells. All the MLAs expressed at least two mesonephric markers. All except one MLA harbored activating Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog mutations. All patients with MLA developed postoperative metastases. MLA had the lowest progression-free survival rate among different histological types of endometrial carcinoma.
CONCLUSION
Uterine MLA is a highly aggressive gynecological malignancy, showing unique morphological and molecular features, frequent recurrences and metastases, as well as poor prognosis.
Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Carcinoma, Endometrioid; Endometrial Neoplasms; Female; Humans; Prognosis; Retrospective Studies
PubMed: 35732320
DOI: 10.21873/cgp.20338 -
Journal of Cancer Research and... 2022Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare type of carcinoma seen in the female genital tract. It arises from the mesonephric remnants situated in the broad ligament, lateral wall... (Review)
Review
Mesonephric carcinoma is a rare type of carcinoma seen in the female genital tract. It arises from the mesonephric remnants situated in the broad ligament, lateral wall of the cervix, vagina, and uterine corpus. Very few cases of mesonephric carcinoma have been reported so far in the literature. The sites mentioned in various literatures include the cervix, vagina, or uterus, but we could not find any literature that mentions posthysterectomy vault as a site for mesonephric carcinoma. Here, we report a case of 40-years-old hysterectomised female who presented in the hospital with nodular growth on the vault and complaints of bleeding per vaginum. Microscopy of the lesion did not show typical morphology of mesonephric carcinoma, but immunohistochemistry played a vital role in the diagnosis of this rare tumor.
Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Adult; Carcinoma; Cervix Uteri; Female; Humans; Hysterectomy; Immunohistochemistry; Uterine Cervical Neoplasms
PubMed: 35381800
DOI: 10.4103/jcrt.JCRT_168_19