Table of Contents
Definition / general | Microscopic (histologic) description | Microscopic (histologic) images | Positive stains | Negative stains | Differential diagnosisCite this page: DePond WD. Nevus cells. PathologyOutlines.com website. https://www.pathologyoutlines.com/topic/lymphnodesnevi.html. Accessed January 18th, 2021.
Definition / general
- Incidence in axillary nodes is 7% per patient and 0.5% per node in one study (Am J Clin Pathol 1994;102:102)
- Presence in sentinel nodes in melanoma patients is associated with cutaneous nevi (Am J Clin Pathol 2004;121:58) and congenital cutaneous nevi (Am J Dermatopathol 2002;24:1)
- May represent benign metastases from intradermal nevus in area of lymphatic drainage (Am J Clin Pathol 1985;84:220)
Microscopic (histologic) description
- Single cells, linear arrangements or aggregates of small, round / oval nevus cells with moderate pale / clear cytoplasm, round nuclei with fine chromatin, no prominent nucleoli or pleomorphism, usually within fibrous capsule and trabeculae, but also within nodal parenchyma (Am J Surg Pathol 2003;27:673) or surrounding a small vessel (Am J Surg Pathol 1996;20:834)
Microscopic (histologic) images
AFIP images
Nevus cells in lymph node
Contributed by Dr. Mark R. Wick
Nevocytic rest
Images hosted on other servers:
cells, right-infiltrating
lobular carcinoma
capsule and vessel of
perinodal adipose tissue
Positive stains
Negative stains
- HMB45 (occasionally is very focal), Ki-67 (< 1%, Am J Surg Pathol 2002;26:1351)
Differential diagnosis
- Blue nevus: also spindled / dendritic cells with heavy pigmentation
- Metastatic carcinoma or melanoma: usually not confined to capsule, atypia, mitotic figures, different immunostaining
- Spitz nevus: larger cells with abundant eosinophilic cytoplasm, vesicular nuclei with prominent nucleoli
