Carcinogenesis 3 Flashcards
What are typical characteristics of a benign tumour?
- Slow-growing
- Well circumscribed
- Distinct
- Mobile
What are typical characteristics of a malignant tumour?
- Rapid growing
- Poorly circumscribed
- Infiltrative
- Fixed to surrounding tissues
What are the typical histiologic features of a benign tumour?
Specifically in regards the nuclei (HY)
- Organised growth
- Uniform nuclei
- Low nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio
- Minimal mitotic activity
- Lack of invasion
- No metastatic potential
What are the typical histiologic features of a malignant tumour?
Specifically in regards the nuclei (HY)
- Disorganised growth
- Nuclear pleomorphism (some big some small) with hyperchromasia (dark blue)
- High nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio
- High mitotic activity
- Invasion
What is the absolute distinguishing feature between benign and malignant?
Metastatic potential
What can be done to charactarize a malignant tumour if histology cannot classify?
Immunohistochemistry
- Helps identify particular proteins which may sub-classify the cell type
What intermediate filament is characteristic of epithelium?
Keratin
What intermediate filament is characteristic of Mesenchyme?
Vimentin
What intermediate filament is characteristic of Muscle?
Desmin
What intermediate filament is characteristic of Neuroglia?
GFAP
What intermediate filament is characteristic of Neurons?
Neurofilament
What intermediate filament is characteristic of prostate epithelium?
PSA
What intermediate filament is characteristic of breast epithelium?
ER
What intermediate filament is characteristic of thyroid follicular cells?
Thyroglobulin
What intermediate filament is characteristic of Neuroendocrine cells? (e.g small cell carcinoma of Lung and carcinoid tumour)
Chromogranin
