Argyrophil cell carcinomas (apudomas) of the uterine cervix

Abstract

Of a series of 97 invasive carcinomas of the cervix, 5 were found to have argyrophil tumor cells, and 3 of these 5 tumors were studied by electron microscopy. The ages of the 5 patients ranged from 36 to 49 years, with a mean age of 42.4 years. The morphologic features of these five tumors were well consistent with those described on a variety of endocrine polypeptide neoplasms such as thyroid medullary carcinomas, carcinoids, pancreatic islet-cell tumors, and oat cell carcinomas of the lung. Microscopically, the 5 tumors were characterized by the formation of solid-sheets, ribbons, streams, and rosettes. They were characterized electron microscopically by the presence of neurosecretory-type granules, the abundance of intracytoplasmic microfilaments, the absence of tonofibrils, and the paucity of desmosomal attachments. On the basis of the microscopic, electron microscopic and cytochemical characteristics, it is suggested that the tumors are a specific type of cervical carcinoma derived from the argyrophil cells, normally found among the linings of the endocervical glands and the cervical squamous epithelium. We believe these 5 tumors should be regarded as an endocrine tumor, another member of apudomas.

A Multicenter Study of the Importance of Systemic Chemotherapy for Patients with Small-Cell Neuroendocrine Carcinoma of the Uterine Cervix

“…Five-year survival rates after radical hysterectomy are as low as 14% and most patients die within 3 years [16,17]. That is why postoperative adjuvant therapy is strongly emphasized in the treatment of early-stage SCNEC.…”

Carcinoid tumour of the uterine cervix.

“…Argyrophilic precursor cells have been demonstrated in most of these sites. In normal cervical mucosa these cells are very rare (Fox et al, 1964), and Tateishi et al (1975) identified small numbers of them in 35 % of instances. To date, 17 carcinoid tumours of the cervix have been documented (Tateishi et al, 1975;Albores-Saavedra etal., 1976).…”

“…More unusual locations of carcinoids are the ovary (Robboy et al, 1975), thymus (Rosai et al, 1976), pancreas (Hallwright et al, 1964;Patchefsky et al, 1974), liver (Primack et al, 1971), biliary tract (Shiffman and Juler, 1964), salivary gland (Nicod, 1958), breast (Cubilla and Woodruff, 1977), and the uterine cervix (Tateishi et al, 1975;Albores-Saavedra et al, 1976). Argyrophilic precursor cells have been demonstrated in most of these sites.…”

Differentiation of a Cell Line of Human Cervical Argyrophil Small Cell Carcinoma to Macrophage Lineage Cells

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Because ASCC is a rare cervical tumor, accounting for only 1.5 to 5% of all cervical tumors, [1][2][3][4][5][6][7] most reports on ASCC have been concerned with one or a few cases. Therefore, development of in vivo and in vitro experimental systems is desirable not only for examining the biological behavior of ASCC, but also for establishing an effective clinical treatment.…”

“…[8][9][10] In our previous studies, we found that TC-YIK cells retained the histochemical characteristics of ASCC cells and could be used as an in vitro experimental model of ASCC, and that the TC-YIK cells were possibly of neuroendocrine origin, based on electron microscopic evidence of small, electron-dense, membrane-bound neurosecretory-type granules and immunohistochemical evidence of neuron-specific enolase, chromogranin, serotonin and gastrin. 8,9,11) In terms of the origin of ASCC, however, there have been three theories: ASCC originates from (i) amine precursor uptake and decarboxylation (APUD) cells, 2,3,12) (ii) undifferentiated epithelial cells with multi-differentiation ability, 13) or (iii) stem cells. 7) In this study, to investigate the origin of ASCC of the uterine cervix and the feasibility of treatment of the tumor with a differentiation inducer, we examined the influence of dibutyryl cyclic adenosine 3′,5′-monophosphate (dBcAMP), a known differentiation inducer, on the characteristics of an ASCC cell line, TC-YIK.…”