Appendiceal tumors exhibiting both neuroendocrine and glandular differentiation are uncommon and have caused difficulty in pathologic classification, prediction of prognosis, and clinical management. Previously, such lesions have been variously designated as adenocarcinoid, goblet cell carcinoid (GCC), and mixed adenocarcinoma carcinoid. In this study, we undertook a retrospective investigation of 63 such cases and classified them as typical GCC (group A) and adenocarcinoma ex GCC on the basis of the histologic features of the tumor at the primary site. The adenocarcinoma ex GCC group was further divided into signet ring cell type (group B) and poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma type (group C). The clinical characteristics and prognosis were compared within these groups and with conventional de novo appendiceal adenocarcinomas. Both groups A and B tumors shared a similar immunoprofile, which included generally focal immunoreactivity for neuroendocrine markers, and a normal intestinal type mucin glycoprotein profile (negative MUC1 expression and preserved MUC2 immunoreactivity). The proliferative index was relatively low in these tumors and slightly increased from groups A to B tumors (11% to 16%). Both beta-catenin and E-cadherin exhibited a normal membranous staining pattern in groups A and B tumors. The poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas ex GCC (group C) demonstrated abnormal p53 and beta-catenin immunoreactivity. The mean follow-up time was 49+/-5 (SE) months. The overall disease-specific survival for all subtypes was 77%, with 46% of patients without evidence of disease and 31% alive with disease. The mean survival was 43+/-7 months. All the patients with clinical stage of I or IIA disease had a favorable outcome after appropriate surgery with or without chemotherapy. Although most patients (63%) with GCC presented at an advanced clinical stage, their clinical outcome could be differentiated by subclassification of tumors. The stage IV-matched 5-year survival was 100%, 38%, and 0% for groups A, B, and C, respectively. In conclusion, GCC is a distinctive appendiceal neoplasm that exhibits unique pathologic features and clinical behavior. They display a spectrum of histologic features and possess the potential to transform to an adenocarcinoma phenotype of either signet ring cell or poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma types. Careful evaluation of the morphologic features of GCCs and appropriate pathologic classification are crucial for clinical management and prediction of outcome. Surgical management with right hemicolectomy is recommended after appendectomy for most cases, particularly those with an adenocarcinoma component (groups B and C).

Purpose Most well-differentiated neuroendocrine tumors (WD-NETs) of the enteropancreatic system are low-intermediate grade (G1,G2). Elevated proliferation demonstrated by either a brisk mitotic rate (>20/10 high power fields) or high Ki67 index (>20%) defines a group of aggressive neoplasms designated as high grade (G3) neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC). High grade NEC is equated with poorly-differentiated NEC (PD-NEC) and is associated with a dismal outcome. Progression of WD-NETs to a high grade neuroendocrine neoplasm very rarely occurs and their clinicopathologic and molecular features need to be characterized. Methods We investigated the 31 cases of WD-NETs with evidence of component of a high grade neoplasm. The primary sites included pancreas, small bowel, bile duct, and rectum. Histopathology of the cases was retrospectively reviewed and selected immunohistochemistry and gene mutation analyses performed. Results The high grade component occurred either within the primary tumor (48%) or at metastatic sites (52%). The clinical presentation, radiographic features, biomarkers, and the genotype of these WD-NETs with high grade component remained akin to those of G1-G2 WD-NETs. The median disease specific survival (DSS) was 55 months (16-119 months), and 2-year and 5-year DSS was 88% and 49%, respectively – significantly better than that of a comparison group of true PD-NEC (DSS 11 months). Conclusion Mixed grades can occur in WD-NETs, which are distinguished from PDNECs by their unique phenotype, proliferative indices, and the genotype. This phenomenon of mixed grade in WD-NET provides additional evidence to the growing recognition that the current WHO G3 category contains both WD-NETs as well as PDNECs.

Background & Aims-TL1A is a tumor necrosis factor-like molecule that mediates a strong costimulation of T helper (T H ) 1 cells. Expression of TL1A is increased in the mucosa of Crohn's disease patients and murine models of ileitis. The aim was to determine the possible role of TL1A in chronic intestinal inflammation.

We introduce and validate a new precision oncology framework for the systematic prioritization of drugs targeting mechanistic tumor dependencies in individual patients. Compounds are prioritized on the basis of their ability to invert the concerted activity of master regulator proteins that mechanistically regulate tumor cell state, as assessed from systematic drug perturbation assays. We validated the approach on a cohort of 212 gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs), a rare malignancy originating in the pancreas and gastrointestinal tract. The analysis identified several master regulator proteins, including key regulators of neuroendocrine lineage progenitor state and immunoevasion, whose role as critical tumor dependencies was experimentally confirmed. Transcriptome analysis of GEP-NET-derived cells, perturbed with a library of 107 compounds, identified the HDAC class I inhibitor entinostat as a potent inhibitor of master regulator activity for 42% of metastatic GEP-NET patients, abrogating tumor growth in vivo. This approach may thus complement current efforts in precision oncology.

Background & Aims Genetic susceptibility loci for Crohn’s disease (CD) are numerous, complex, and likely interact with undefined components of the environment. It has been a challenge to link the effects of particular loci to phenotypes of cells associated with pathogenesis of CD, such as Paneth cells. We investigated whether specific phenotypes of Paneth cells associated with particular genetic susceptibility loci can be used to define specific subtypes of CD. Methods We performed a retrospective analysis of 119 resection specimens collected from patients with CD at 2 separate medical centers. Paneth cell phenotypes were classified as normal or abnormal (with disordered, diminished, diffuse, or excluded granule phenotypes) based on lysozyme-positive secretory granule morphology. To uncover the molecular basis of the Paneth cell phenotypes, we developed methods to determine transcriptional profiles from whole-thickness and laser-capture microdissected, formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections. Results The proportion of abnormal Paneth cells was associated with the number of CD-associated NOD2 risk alleles. The cumulative number of NOD2 and ATG16L1 risk alleles had an additive effect on the proportion of abnormal Paneth cells. Unsupervised clustering analysis of demographic and Paneth cell data divided patients into 2 principal subgroups, defined by high and low proportions of abnormal Paneth cells. The disordered and diffuse abnormal Paneth cell phenotypes were associated with an altered transcriptional signature of immune system activation. We observed an inverse correlation between abnormal Paneth cells and the presence of granuloma. Moreover, high proportions of abnormal Paneth cells were associated with shorter time to disease recurrence after surgery. Conclusions Histologic analysis of Paneth cell phenotypes can be used to divide patients with CD into subgroups with distinct pathognomonic and clinical features.