Carcinoma of pancreas: an ultrastructural study

20 cases of adenocarcinoma of pancreas were included in this study. They were 13 men and 7 women with age range 36-70 years. These cases were operated in department of General Surgery, Zagazig University.Histopathologic diagnosis revealed 6 cases were well differentiated and 12 cases were moderate while 2 cases were poorly differentiated. E/M study of all cases showed that the most common affected organelle was the mitochondria and the nuclear change were essential as a landmark of malignancy. Light microscopic differentiation between pancreatic well differentiated adenocarcinoma and other pancreatic lesions as chronic pancreatitis was difficult in some cases. So E/M examination is an important modality in diagnosis of such cases

Choriocarcinoma, placental site trophoblastic tumor [PSTT]: ultra structural study

Ultrastructural study of five cases of choriocarcinoma out of the examined cases of trophoblastic disease revealed biphasic cytotrophoblast [CT] and syncytotrophoblast [ST] structure. CT cells were characterized by electronic light cytoplasm containing scattered rough endoplasmic reticulum [RER]. The nucleus had oval contour and prominent nucleoli. ST cells showed complex electronic dense cytoplasm containing abundant RER, free ribosomes and lipid droplets. More than one nucleus were present with irregular outlines and coarse clumped chromatin. Two cases of placental site trophoblast tumor [PSTT] were studied ultrastructurally showing prominent intermediate trophoblast [IT] cells characterizing by irregular hyperchromatic nucleus with complex cytoplasm with dilated RER and paranuclear tonofilaments. The ultrastructural study of these lesions gave a perfect diagnostic differentiation between them