SOX2 Gene Amplification and Overexpression is Linked to HPV-positive Vulvar Carcinomas.

SOX2 (SRY-related HMG-box 2) belongs to the SOX gene family of high-mobility transcription factors indispensably involved in gene regulation in pluripotent stem cells and neural differentiation. SOX2 copy number increases have been frequently reported in various types of squamous cell cancer. To better understand the effect of SOX2 aberrations on vulvar cancer phenotype and patient prognosis, we analyzed SOX2 copy number changes using fluorescence in situ hybridization and SOX2 expression by immunohistochemistry in 55 squamous cell carcinomas of the vulva. SOX2 amplification was found in 20.8% of tumors; 27.3% of vulvar carcinomas showed SOX2 protein overexpression. SOX2 amplification was correlated with SOX2 overexpression in our data set (P<0.01). Amplification of the SOX2 locus was associated with high tumor grade (P<0.05) and human papillomavirus (HPV) positivity (P<0.01). SOX2-amplified tumors showed more frequently a basaloid phenotype than nonamplified carcinomas. SOX2 protein overexpression was also correlated with basaloid phenotype and positive HPV status of vulvar carcinomas (P<0.05, each). SOX2 amplification and expression were not associated with patient overall survival. In conclusion, SOX2 copy number increases are detectable in a substantial proportion of high-grade HPV-positive vulvar carcinomas with basaloid differentiation. Our study provides further evidence for different molecular alterations in HPV-positive and HPV-negative vulvar carcinomas

Atypical case of a painful presacral tumor

BACKGROUND Retention of surgical items after a surgical procedure is not only a medical error, but can also lead to various unexpected complications and additional surgery procedures even years after the initial operation. CASE REPORT A 59-year old woman was referred to our hospital with intermittent pain in the lesser pelvis for about three months. She had undergone laparotomy for cholecystectomy 24 years ago and adnexectomy more than 30 years ago. CT-scan and MRI indicated a presacral tumor, most likely compatible with a presacral teratoma. A laparoscopic resection of the tumor was performed. Intraoperatively the tumor showed no clear capsule and could only be resected by fragments. The pathological report analyzed textile fibres, diagnosing a textiloma. The patient showed an uneventful postoperative follow-up. CONCLUSIONS Most likely, the textile fibres originated from a sponge, which was retained during adnexectomy 33 years ago. There are numerous reports of retained surgical items discovered years after the initial operation. In literature, there are several reported cases of transmural migration of a sponge into the intestine, stomach and bladder. In our case, the sponge must have migrated to the deepest point of the retroperitoneum, which appears to be quite unusual, as no comparable case reports could be found. This case stresses the importance of the surgeon's awareness to particular appearances of a retained surgical sponge from a surgical procedure performed even decades ago. Additionally, this case report stresses the importance of meticulous analysis of individual patient medical history

Variability of predictive markers (hormone receptors, Her2, Ki67) and intrinsic subtypes of breast cancer in four consecutive years 2015-2018

PURPOSE Accurate monitoring of predictive markers is of utmost importance as oncological treatment decisions almost entirely depend on these factors. In this study, we conducted a quality control assessment on hormone receptors, Her2 status, Ki67 Labelling Index (LI) and histological grading in breast cancer over 4 years (2015-2018). METHODS Altogether 2214 consecutive breast cancer cases were included. Data on estrogen (ER) and progesterone receptors (PR), Her2 and Ki67, were available in all cases and were tested mostly on preoperative biopsies, in selected cases on postoperative surgical specimens. ER, PR, and Ki67 were assessed with immunohistochemistry (IHC), Her2 status with IHC and fluorescence in situ hybridization. RESULTS ER/PR were positive in 74-79% cases, ER/PR/Her2 negative in 6.16-10.70% and Her2 positive in 11.49-13.88%/year. Ki67 had median values as 15-17.5% in ER/PR-positive cases, 55-60% in triple-negative cases and 30-32.50% in Her2-positive cases. Histological grading distribution for well (G1), moderately (G2) and poorly (G3) differentiated carcinomas was 15.8-19.1% for G1, 54.2-54.8% for G2 and 21.7-23.7% for G3 cases. Variation in yearly distributions was not significant in any of these markers. CONCLUSIONS Predictive markers displayed a yearly similar distribution in breast cancer cases independently of grading or of intrinsic subtypes. These results point to a qualitative high performance of predictive marker assessment in breast cancer, corresponding to expected on average positivity rate per marker and per year. It is recommended to monitor positivity rate of ER, PR, Ki67 and Her2 yearly or periodically to comply with quality assurance requirements

Juvenile papillomatosis of the breast (Swiss cheese disease) has frequent associations with PIK3CA and/or AKT1 mutations

Juvenile papillomatosis (JP), the so-called Swiss cheese disease is a rare benign breast disease of young adults. An association (up to 28 %) with breast-cancer within the family of affected patients has been reported. A multinodular cystic breast-mass lesion and calcifications characterizes JP in imaging studies. The histological picture is diverse and comprises multiple intraductal-papillomas, usual ductal hyperplasia (UDH), ductectasias, perifocal sclerosing adenosis and calcification. Patients with complete excision of JP lesions have an excellent follow-up; breast cancer develops only on a very low subset of patients. Molecular background of JP has not been investigated until now. In this study, we addressed mutational analysis of JP cases and correlated these results with follow-up and family-history in context with a comprehensive review of JP literature. We identified 13 cases fulfilling the criteria of JP. All patients were female with a median-age of 38 years (26 to 50 years). Follow-up information was available in 11 of 13 patients. Sufficient paraffin embedded tissue and good DNA quality for next generation sequencing (NGS) was available in 10 patients. Paraffin blocks were microdissected in the area of intraductal proliferative disease, the tissue cores underwent NGS analysis using Oncomine Comprehensive Panel. In 5 of 10 patients, we found PIK3CA mutations, in 2 of 10 patients AKT1 mutations in known hotspot regions. Further mutations in MET, FGFR3, PTEN, ATM, NF1 and GNAS genes were detected in individual patients. Some of these mutations were present at high allelic frequencies suggesting germ line mutations. 2 of 3 patients with positive family history had PIK3CA mutation; one patient with positive family history had an AKT1 mutation. One patient who subsequently developed invasive ductal carcinoma in the contralateral breast possibly had a germ line ATM mutation. Our results confirm hotspot mutations in PIK3CA and AKT1 genes in JP associated with positive family history for breast cancer, although these mutations are not specific for JP. The genetic link between JP, positive family history and subsequent risk of breast cancer, needs further studies

Primary Peritoneal Serous Borderline Tumors as a Therapeutic Challenge: a Systematic Review of the Literature

Primary peritoneal serous borderline tumors (PPSBT) are rare neoplasms that can present as an incidental finding at laparoscopy and raise concern regarding a primary ovarian tumor with peritoneal implants. The aim is to present an overview of all reported cases of PPSBT, including a case from our own department, with a focus on clinical presentation, diagnosis, therapeutic options, and prognosis. A search for articles containing various terminologies describing PPSBT was performed via PubMed. We included English and French language publications from 1966 to May 2019. All identified manuscripts (N = 15) were reviewed completely. To date, 229 cases of PPSBT have been reported in literature. Most patients present with infertility or abdominal pain. Diagnosis is based on histopathology since appropriate imaging or specific tumor markers are lacking. The main therapy applied in the majority of cases was simple (74 cases, 32.3%) or extended (136 cases, 59.4%) resection. Prognosis seems good, independent of the extent of surgery, with recurrence rates below 25%, and follow-up periods from 5 months to > 30 years. PPSBT is a rare condition, often found in women of reproductive age with a history of infertility or abdominal pain. In most cases, the diagnosis is established incidentally during laparoscopy or laparotomy followed by histopathology. Considering the good prognosis even with incomplete resection, limited surgery to retain fertility might be good initial options. Since the course of the disease can comprise decades, a long-term follow-up is crucial

Discrepancies between radiological and histological findings in preoperative core needle (CNB) and vacuum-assisted (VAB) breast biopsies

BACKGROUND: Ultrasound (US)-guided breast biopsy is a routine diagnostic method used to correlate imaging finding to a histological diagnosis which is still the gold standard in preoperative diagnostics. The accuracy of US-guided breast biopsies relies on a precise radiologic-histopathologic correlation, which is discussed amongst an interdisciplinary team of gynecologists, radiologists and pathologists. However, false-negative or non-diagnostic biopsy results occur. Hence, a thorough and honest discussion to clarify the reason for discrepancies and to decide the next diagnostic step between specialists of the different disciplines is warranted. In this retrospective study, we analyzed discrepant findings between imaging and pathology results on preoperative breast biopsies. METHODS: Core and vacuum-assisted breast biopsies from 232 patients were included in this study. Inclusion criteria were (1) non-diagnostic (B1) category on histology independent from imaging category and (2) histological benign (B2) category with a BIRADS 5 (Breast Imaging Reporting and Data System) rating on imaging. Histological diagnoses were retrieved from all cases. Follow-up data were available in most cases. RESULTS: 138 biopsies were classified as B1, 94 biopsies as B2 category. 51 of 138 B1 cases (37%) underwent re-biopsy. Re-biopsy found malignancy (B5) in 19 of 51 cases, and B3/4 (premalignant) lesions in 3 of 51 cases. All B2 cases underwent second-look imaging-diagnosis, in 57 of 94 cases (66%) consecutive direct surgery or re-biopsy. Of these, malignancy was diagnosed histologically in 26 of 57 cases (45.6%). CONCLUSION: Determining imaging-pathology concordance after US-guided breast biopsy is essential. Discrepant cases and further diagnostic steps need to be discussed with an interdisciplinary approach

Deep learning for the standardized classification of Ki-67 in vulva carcinoma: A feasibility study

Background The aim of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of automatic classification of Ki-67 histological immunostainings in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the vulva using a deep convolutional neural network (dCNN). Material and methods For evaluation of the dCNN, we used 55 well characterized squamous cell carcinomas of the vulva in a tissue microarray (TMA) format in this retrospective study. The tumor specimens were classified in 3 different categories C1 (0-2%), C2 (2-20%) and C3 (>20%), representing the relation of the number of KI-67 positive tumor cells to all cancer cells on the TMA spot. Representative areas of the spots were manually labeled by extracting images of 351 × 280 pixels. A dCNN with 13 convolutional layers was used for the evaluation. Two independent pathologists classified 45 labeled images in order to compare the dCNN's results to human readouts. Results Using a small labeled dataset with 1020 images with equal distribution among classes, the dCNN reached an accuracy of 90.9% (93%) for the training (validation) data. Applying a larger dataset with additional 1017 labeled images resulted in an accuracy of 96.1% (91.4%) for the training (validation) dataset. For the human readout, there were no significant differences between the pathologists and the dCNN in Ki-67 classification results. Conclusion The dCNN is capable of a standardized classification of Ki-67 staining in vulva carcinoma; therefore, it may be suitable for quality control and standardization in the assessment of tumor grading

Prognostic and predictive relevance of CA-125 at primary surgery of ovarian cancer

Despite radical surgery and chemotherapy, most patients with ovarian cancer develop recurrence and die due to progressive disease. To stratify patients for optimal therapy, prognostic and predictive factors are needed. We examined the role of pre- and postoperative CA-125 in this context. A total of 231 patients with primary ovarian cancer who presented for surgery at our institution between 1996 and 2004 were included in this study (25% FIGO stage I/II and 75% FIGO stage III/IV). The prognostic and predictive values of CA-125 serum concentrations before and after surgery as well as their correlation with clinicopathological variables were analyzed. Median preoperative CA-125 was 61.6 kU/l (9-1,867 kU/l) in stage I/II patients and 533.15 kU/l (10-22,617 kU/l) in stage III/IV patients. Before surgery, 67% of stage I/II patients and 96% of stage III/IV patients had elevated CA-125 (> 35 kU/l). There was a significant decrease in CA-125 after surgery in both patient cohorts (61.6-43.4 kU/l, P = 0.001 and 533.15-92.3 kU/l, P <0.001, respectively). Furthermore, in stage III/IV patients with complete or so-called optimal (<1 cm residual disease) debulking, preoperative CA-125 levels were significantly lower than in patients with residual disease > 1 cm (P = 0.01, P = 0.009, respectively). Neither CA-125 concentration before surgery nor its decrease was prognostically relevant for recurrence and survival at any stage. However, in stage III/IV patients, a high postoperative CA-125 was associated with shorter progression-free survival (P = 0.024). Although CA-125 serum levels differ significantly before and after surgery in early and advanced-stage ovarian cancer and preoperative CA-125 values correlate with surgical outcome in advanced-stage disease, we could not determine a preoperative cutoff value for prediction of the surgical result. A prognostic relevance was only observed for postoperative CA-125 in stage III/IV patients