Open AccessBREAST CANCER WITH REACTIVE MULTINUCLEATED GIANT CELLS: REPORT OF THREE CASES
Author(s) -
Ichijima Kunio,
Kobashi Yoichiro,
Ueda Yoshimichi,
Matsuo Shuji
Publication year - 1986
Publication title -
acta patholigica japonica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.73
H-Index - 74
ISSN - 0001-6632
DOI - 10.1111/j.1440-1827.1986.tb01034.x
Subject(s) - carcinoembryonic antigen , histiocyte , giant cell , pathology , breast cancer , immunohistochemistry , cancer , multinucleate , medicine , antigen , biology , immunology
We report here three cases of breast cancer with reactive multinucleated giant cells. The patients were among the 605 patients with breast cancer seen in the past 17 years at Tenri Hospital; the incidence of this variety of breast cancer was 0.5%. Enzyme histochemical and electron microscopic examination suggested that the giant cells were of histiocytic origin. However, results of immunohistochemical technique, S‐100 protein, lysozyme, nonspecific cross‐reacting antigen with carcinoembryonic antigen, α‐1‐antitrypsin, and α‐1‐antichymotrypsin, all currently used as markers of histiocytes, were negative. Because of the rarity of this variety of breast cancer, the biological significance of these unusual findings remains unknown.