This Week in Modern Pathology

In Modern Pathology, researchers from Shimane University School of Medicine, in Izumo, Japan, examine whether ARID1A mutations, which are common in ovarian clear cell carcinoma, are of prognostic value. From their study of 77 formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded ovarian cancer samples — 60 clear cell carcinomas and 17 high-grade serous adenocarcinomas — the researchers found that ARID1A expression is more frequently lost in ovarian clear cell carcinomas than serous adenocarcinomas. Further, the "loss of ARID1A in ovarian clear cell carcinomas predicted a shorter progression-free interval," the researchers say, as those tumors did not respond as well to chemotherapy.

Rafael Fonseca from the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., and his colleagues report on their genomic analysis of marginal zone lymphomas and lymphoplasmacytic lymphomas, two cancers that can be difficult to distinguish from other non-Hodgkin's lymphomas. "Although the entities share a common set of genomic abnormalities they are also characterized by the presence of genes and cellular pathways differentially affected," the authors write. "Elucidation of the genetic alterations contributing to the pathogenesis of the analyzed non-Hodgkin lymphoma subtypes may guide design of specific therapeutic approaches."

Researchers from the University of Michigan Medical School report in the online early edition of Modern Pathology that breast metaplastic carcinomas express epithelial-to-mesenchymal-transition markers. In particular, they looked at the expression of ZEB1 and E-cadherin, and the presence or absence of tumor-initiating cells in 27 primary metaplastic carcinomas of the breast. "Our study shows that metaplastic carcinomas of the breast have histological evidence and express biological markers of an epithelial to mesenchymal transition characterized by progressive overexpression of ZEB1 and downregulation of E-cadherin," the researchers report, adding that "as the process of epithelial to mesenchymal transition and the presence of breast cancer stem cells have been reported to enhance breast cancer metastasis, our data support the hypothesis that blockade of the epithelial to mesenchymal transition and/or tumor stem cells may improve the outcome of patients with metaplastic breast carcinomas."

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This Week in Modern Pathology