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ABSTRACT: Granular cell tumor of the esophagus is an unusual tumor. It presents usually as a small and well limited lesion, localized in the mucosa or the submucosa. We report two cases of granular cell tumor of the esophagus, remarkable for their infiltrative growth. The tumor invaded the esophageal muscularis propria in one case and went through the adventitia in the other. There was no recurrence 1 year and 7 years after surgery, despite an incomplete resection in the second case. Thirteen cases of infiltrative granular cell tumors of the esophagus have been published. They are usually responsible for dysphagia. They can invade the muscularis propria and the adventitia as well as the periesophageal organs. There is no recurrence, even after an incomplete resection. The infiltrative feature of the granular cell tumors of the esophagus, by itself, cannot be considered as a malignant feature. The diagnosis of malignant granular cell tumor of the esophagus lies on the discover of metastases.
Annales de Pathologie 04/2000; 20(2):158-62. · 0.25 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: A 72-year-old woman in good general health presented a massive intestinal and colonic ischemia with rapid post-operative death, due to mesenteric inflammatory veno-occlusive disease. Mesenteric inflammatory veno-occlusive disease, first described in 1994, is a vasculitis of unknown etiology limited to the mesenteric area, affecting exclusively veins and venules and sparing arteries. Histologically, there are acute lesions of lymphocytic and/or necrotizing, sometimes granulomatous phlebitis and chronic lesions of myointimal hyperplasia reducing the lumen of the veins. In this case, polymorphonuclear eosinophils were particularly numerous.
Annales de Pathologie 12/1999; 19(6):525-8. · 0.25 Impact Factor
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ABSTRACT: Angiogenesis is a complex multistep process essential for tumour growth. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a potent endothelial cell mitogen and vascular permeability-inducing agent. Recent studies have shown that VEGF expression is correlated to microvessel density and tumour progression. The aim of this study was to analyse VEGF expression in a series of gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumours.
Surgical specimens from 28 gastrointestinal carcinoids and 20 pancreatic endocrine tumours were examined for VEGF expression by immunohistochemistry. Intense cytoplasmic staining for VEGF was observed in several cells of the islets of Langerhans and in neuroendocrine cells of normal digestive mucosa. All midgut carcinoids showed strong VEGF expression in tumoral cells. Positive VEGF immunostaining was observed in 16 of 20 neuroendocrine pancreatic tumours but it was usually much lower than in midgut carcinoids. Western blotting analysis in eight cases identified a major band at 30-32 kDa. No correlation between VEGF expression and tumour stage was found.
This study demonstrates that neuroendocrine cells are a major source of VEGF, particularly in midgut carcinoids. This finding suggests that the presence of VEGF may be required to maintain the differentiated state of capillary vessels in these hypervascular tumours. Such secretion, in conjunction with the other growth factors synthesized by these neuroendocrine tumours, may have an important role in tumour growth.
Histopathology 02/1998; 32(2):133-8. · 3.08 Impact Factor
