Breast
Other carcinoma subtypes, not WHO classified
Signet ring cell carcinoma
Author: Monika Roychowdhury, M.D.
Last author update: 1 August 2012
Last staff update: 16 August 2022
Copyright: 2002-2023, PathologyOutlines.com, Inc.
PubMed search: Signet ring cell [title] breast
Table of Contents
Definition / general | Case reports | Microscopic (histologic) description | Microscopic (histologic) images | Cytology description | Differential diagnosisCite this page: Roychowdhury M. Signet ring cell carcinoma. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/breastmalignantsignetringcell.html. Accessed June 4th, 2023.
Definition / general
- Ductal carcinoma with cells resembling gastric carcinoma due to acidic mucin that fills cytoplasm and displaces nucleus
- Excludes cases with lobular features (signet ring cell variant of lobular carcinoma)
Case reports
- 40 year old woman with signet ring cell carcinoma of the breast as a source of pelvic floor metastatic mass (Acta Chir Belg 2005;105:224)
- 52 year old woman with signet ring cell carcinoma associated with invasive ductal carcinoma (Breast Cancer 1999;6:223)
- 54 year old woman with signet ring cell carcinoma of the breast with uterine metastasis (J Obstet Gynaecol Res 2012;38:948)
- 68 year old woman with signet ring cell carcinoma of the breast (Pathol Int 2000;50:67)
- 73 year old woman with invasive ductal carcinoma of the breast with signet ring cell and mucinous carcinoma components (Diagn Cytopathol 2007;35:171)
- 74 year old woman with metastatic breast cancer to the stomach (Case Rep Oncol 2010;3:142)
- Ductal type signet ring cell carcinoma of breast (Pathology 2011;43:282)
Microscopic (histologic) description
- Mucin fills cytoplasm and displaces nucleus
- Usually coexists with invasive ductal NOS
- High nuclear grade; DCIS may be present, but no lobular features (by definition)
Microscopic (histologic) images
Images hosted on other servers:
Breast metastasis to stomach
Cytology description
- Look for signet ring cells if plasmacytoid cells are identified
- Favor ductal carcinoma if hypercellular, single signet ring cells, high nuclear grade and tubule formation
- Favor lobular carcinoma if hypocellular, single signet ring cells and mild / moderate nuclear grade (Cytopathology 2009;20:321)
Differential diagnosis
- Metastatic GI signet ring cell carcinoma: history, no DCIS, CDX2+ and ER- (Am J Clin Pathol 2004;121:884, ISRN Obstet Gynecol 2011;2011:426150)
- Signet ring cell variant of lobular carcinoma: usually classic lobular component present, no DCIS, ER+ and E-cadherin negative
