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Anaplastic Myoepithelial Carcinoma of the Sinonasal Tract: an Underrecognized Salivary-Type Tumor Among the Sinonasal Small Round Blue Cell Malignancies? Report of One Case and a Review of the Literature

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Abstract

We present a 45 year old female patient with a nasal carcinoma showing high-grade/anaplastic histomorphological features and with a distinct myoepithelial immunohistochemical phenotype including positivity for smooth muscle actin, p63, S100 protein with no sustentacular pattern, calponin, cytokeratin 14, vimentin and cytokeratins (AE1-3 and CK5/6). A minority (<5%) of the cells showed focal and variable immunoreactivity for EMA with no cuticular/canalicular pattern. Bcl-2, CD99, CD117 and CD56 were variously positive, but chromogranin and synaptophysin were negative. Weak to moderate nuclear p53 immunoreactivity was seen in 50% of tumor cells. Mib-1/Ki-67 showed an average proliferation of 60–70%. Fluorescent in situ hybridization revealed no EWS-gene translocation. In situ hybridization for EBER was negative.

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Acknowledgments

We want to thank Mr. Tee Chok for taking the photomicrographs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, National University Health System, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore, 119074, Singapore

    Fredrik Petersson & Siok Bian Ng

  2. Department of Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore

    Siew Shuen Chao

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  1. Fredrik Petersson
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Correspondence to Fredrik Petersson.

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Petersson, F., Chao, S.S. & Ng, S.B. Anaplastic Myoepithelial Carcinoma of the Sinonasal Tract: an Underrecognized Salivary-Type Tumor Among the Sinonasal Small Round Blue Cell Malignancies? Report of One Case and a Review of the Literature. Head and Neck Pathol 5, 144–153 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12105-010-0226-y

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