Laryngeal angiosarcoma: a clinicopathologic study of five cases with a review of the literature.

Head & Neck, Larynx
Loos BM, Wieneke JA, Thompson LD.
Laryngoscope. 2001 Jul;111(7):1197-202.
OBJECTIVE: Primary laryngeal angiosarcoma (LA) is rare without a reported series evaluating these tumors.
STUDY DESIGN/METHODS: Five patients with LA were retrospectively retrieved from the Otorhinolaryngic Registry of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology.
RESULTS: Three men and 2 women, aged 29 to 71 years, presented with hoarseness (n = 4) and hemoptysis (n = 1). Two patients had previous neck radiation. The tumors involved the supraglottis (n = 4) with a mean size of 3.1 cm. Histologically, all tumors had anastomosing vascular channels lined by remarkably atypical endothelial cells protruding into the lumen, frequent atypical mitotic figures, and hemorrhage. All cases tested (n = 4) demonstrated immunoreactivity with antibodies to Factor VIII-RA and CD34. All patients had surgery followed by postoperative radiation (n = 3 patients). Three patients died with disease (mean, 17 mo), whereas one patient is alive with no evidence of disease at 18 years.
CONCLUSIONS: LA is a rare tumor, frequently associated with previous radiation, usually involving the supraglottis with characteristic histomorphologic and immunophenotypic features. LA has a poor prognosis, making appropriate separation from other conditions important.
PubMed ID: 11568541
Article Size: <1 MB
 

Langerhans cell histiocytosis of the thyroid: a series of seven cases and a review of the literature.

Endocrine, Thyroid
Thompson LD, Wenig BM, Adair CF, Smith BC, Heffess CS.
Mod Pathol. 1996 Feb;9(2):145-9.
Langerhans cell histiocytosis is a rare disorder, with a few reports describing isolated thyroid gland involvement. We report seven cases, which included four females and three males ranging in age from 2 months to 55 years, with a median age of 37 years. Histologically, the cases demonstrated either diffuse or focal involvement of the thyroid gland by Langerhans cell histiocytes, characterized by bean-shaped, lobated, folded nuclei. In association with the histiocytic infiltrate, there was a prominent eosinophilic cellular component, as well as destruction of the thyroid follicles. All cases occurred in a background of lymphocytic thyroiditis. One case demonstrated adenomatoid nodules, whereas another had a microscopic papillary carcinoma. Immunohistochemical staining demonstrated positive reactivity with S-100 protein, lysozyme, and KP-1. Four patients with isolated thyroid disease, treated by surgical resection alone, are alive without systemic disease from 3 to 19 years after initial presentation. The three patients with systemic disease died within 1 year of the initial diagnosis with disease-related complications. Localized disease portends a favorable prognosis as compared to the thyroid involvement as part of systemic disease.
PubMed ID: 8657721
Article Size: 3 MB