Twelve Cases of Neuroendocrine Carcinomas of the Uterine Cervix: Cytology, Histopathology and Discussion of Their Histogenesis

Objective: Neuroendocrine carcinoma (NEC) of the uterine cervix is a highly aggressive type of tumor. Therefore, recognition of its cytology and histopathology is important for early diagnosis. Study Design: We report 6 cases of small-cell and 6 cases of large-cell NEC of the uterine cervix, including 5 cytology slides. AE1/3, CEA, p63, p16, CD56, chromogranin and synaptophysin were detected. Results: Two cytology slides of small-cell NEC showed sheet-like clusters. The tumor cells were uniformly small, with finely granular chromatin, scant cytoplasm and absent nucleoli. Three large-cell NEC smears showed palisading, molding and abortive rosettes with prominent eosinophilic nucleoli. The tumor cells had either abundant cytoplasm or no cytoplasm at all. The histopathology analysis indicated a transition from dysplasia glands or adenocarcinoma in situ glands to NEC in 6 cases. Conclusion: Cervical cytology of NEC has many unique characteristics, distinct from the characteristics of other lesions. We also demonstrated a hypothesis of the histogenesis of some NECs. Copyright (c) 2012 S. Karger AG, Basel