Cytopathological features of mammary analogue secretory carcinoma--review of literature

Diagn Cytopathol. 2015 Feb;43(2):131-7. doi: 10.1002/dc.23146. Epub 2014 Mar 21.

Abstract

Mammary analogue secretory carcinoma (MASC) is a recently described salivary gland tumor that morphologically resembles mammary secretory carcinoma and carries the identical ETV6-NTRK3 fusion gene. We report a surgical resected case of MASC in the parotid gland of a 41-year-old man. The cytological smears of a preoperative fine-needle aspiration showed many sheets and crowded clusters of monotonous epithelioid cells with mild atypia, suggestive of monomorphic tumor. Histologically, the tumor was composed of cuboidal cells with follicular, tubular, and solid structures, reminiscent of acinic cell carcinoma of follicular variant, which had been previously classified. This case had ETV6-NTRK3 fusion gene transcript confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. In the cytological and histopathological diagnosis of monomorphic tumor of salivary gland, MASC needs to be taken into consideration as a differential diagnosis. Further immunohistochemical and gene analyses are needed in diagnosis of MASC.

Keywords: ETV6-NTRK3 fusion transcript; Mammary analogue secretory carcinoma; fine-needle aspiration; salivary gland.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Biopsy, Fine-Needle
  • Breast Neoplasms / diagnosis
  • Breast Neoplasms / genetics
  • Breast Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Carcinoma / diagnosis
  • Carcinoma / genetics
  • Carcinoma / pathology*
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Oncogene Proteins, Fusion / genetics
  • Parotid Neoplasms / diagnosis
  • Parotid Neoplasms / genetics
  • Parotid Neoplasms / pathology*

Substances

  • ETV6-NTRK3 fusion protein, human
  • Oncogene Proteins, Fusion

Supplementary concepts

  • Secretory breast carcinoma