Glassy cell carcinoma

Uterus
Endometrial carcinoma
Glassy cell carcinoma

Author: Nat Pernick, M.D. (see Authors page)

Revised: 25 January 2017, last major update September 2011

Copyright: (c) 2002-2017, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.

PubMed search: glassy cell carcinoma

Page views in 2018: 913

Page views in 2019 to date: 56

Table of Contents

Cite this page: Glassy cell carcinoma. PathologyOutlines.com website. http://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/uterusglassycell.html. Accessed January 22nd, 2019.

Definition / general

Rare type of adenosquamous carcinoma, similar to cervical counterpart
See also topic in Cervix chapter

Case reports

60 year old woman (Arch Pathol Lab Med 2001;125:816)
63 year old woman (Pathol Res Pract 2007;203:217)
68 year old woman (Orv Hetil 2009;150:1173)

Microscopic (histologic) description

Diffuse solid sheets of tumor cells with eosinophilic, ground glass cytoplasm, distinct cell walls, large nuclei and prominent nucleoli
Frequent mitotic figures
Heavy eosinophilic and lymphocytic infiltrate common
Usually some glandular component
Most authors require 30% - 100% of glassy cells for diagnosis

Microscopic (histologic) images

Images hosted on other servers:

Various images

Various images - cervix

Positive stains

p63 (67%), mucin or CEA (56%), HPV (67%, Int J Gynecol Pathol 2009;28:389)

Positive stains

Variable keratin, EMA and CEA

Electron microscopy description

Intermediate filaments, polyribosomes, tonofibrils and desmosomes