Retroperitoneal malignant schwannoma and peritoneal malignant mesothelioma: a case report.

Malignant schwannoma and peritoneal malignant mesothelioma (MM) are very rare tumors. Schwannoma or neurilemmoma-benign or malignant-do not arise from the nerves, but from the supporting Schwann cells. Malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNSTs) commonly are large in size. They are painful and may cause many different symptoms depending on their location and size. MM arises primarily from the surface serosal cells of the pleural, peritoneal, and pericardial cavities. A malignant schwannoma was diagnosed in a 52-yearold woman, which was surgically treated. After a 17-month disease-free interval, local recurrence was diagnosed. The patient was operated on for second time and MM was diagnosed as second primary tumor, along with recurrence of the malignant schwannoma. The patient received postoperative adjuvant external beam radiotherapy and chemotherapy. Despite combined-modality treatment the disease progressed and the patient was operated on for third time 2.5 years after the first operation with partial tumor resection. She died 3 years after the first diagnosis. Early diagnosis of these two types of tumors is very difficult because of unspecific clinical symptoms. Singlemodality therapy of these tumors has shown poor results. Combined-modality approaches have shown some benefits, but further studies are required.

Benign and malignant struma ovarii: report of three cases and review of the literature.

Struma ovarii belongs to the group of monodermal and highly specialized teratomas and comprises less than 5% of mature teratomas. Thyroid tissue is present exclusively or predominantly. Malignant transformation in struma ovarii is uncommon, and when present, it exhibits a follicular pattern most of the times. Three patients with the diagnosis of struma ovarii are presented herein. Two of them had a unilateral adnexal mass with ascites in one case. Total abdominal hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy and omentectomy were carried out in both patients. In both patients thyroid hormonal status was normal pre and postoperatively. The third patient had a histology compatible with follicular carcinoma of the thyroid tissue of struma ovarii; strumal carcinoid was also present. Postoperatively monochemotherapy with etoposide was administered for 6 cycles every 3 weeks. Thyroid hormones and thyroid ultrasonography (US) were also normal in this patient. Surgical management is the treatment of choice for struma ovarii which also represents a preventive measure for possible future malignant transformation.

[Prenatal diagnosis of skeletal dysplasia: case report of a fetus with multiple anomalies]. / Problem antenatalne dijagnostike skeletnih displazija: prikaz slucaja fetusa sa multiplim anomalijama.

INTRODUCTION: Skeletal anomalies are in the group of anomalies most difficult to be diagnosed antenatally. But, because of high lethality and morbidity rate as well as high possibility to be found again in the next pregnancy, they need to be systematically and actively looked for during every scan. CASE REPORT: A pregnant woman, aged 18, primigravida, was admitted to the Dept. of Obstetrics and Gynaecology because of polyhydramnios and suspected multiple fetal malformations. Fetal biparietal diameter and abdominal circumference were adequate for 33 weeks gestation, whereas all the long bones were short for the gestational age. A detailed ultrasound morphology check was impossible because of the excessive amount of amniotic fluid, but the skull, brain, lungs, spine and abdomen appeared normal. There was an impression of frontal bossing and left-sided cleft lip. A thoraco-abdominal disproportion was evident. All the extremities were short, feet were normal, and hands were not extended during the whole scan. The woman underwent an uneventful amino-drainage and three days after that she ruptured the membranes, giving birth to a live female, 2150 gr, 46 cm, Apgar score 6/7. The anomalies seen on ultrasound were confirmed after birth. After a series of dyspnea the neonate was transferred to the Dept. of Paediatrics where it underwent a series of further extensive diagnostic procedures and 37 days after birth it passed away. Postmortem examination led to the following diagnoses: Neonatus femininus eutrophicus temporis aetatis. Defectus partis memebranacei septi interventricularis. Ductus arteriosus Botalli persistence. Hypoplasia thymi. Cheliognathopalatoschisis. Low set ears. Extremitates breves. Atelectasis subtotalis pulmonis bilateralis. Foramen ovale apertum cum valvula competent. Oedema cerebri gradus maioris. DISCUSSION: Majority of fetal skeletal malformations can be relatively easily visualised during ultrasound scans and hence ultrasound is the most sensitive way of prenatal diagnosis of these anomalies. Maternal habitus, fetal position, alteration of amniotic fluid volume and gestational age can be factors that may aggravate check-ups. A prerogative for an early prenatal diagnosis of fetal skeletal anomalies is a well organized scan of each and every fetus that checks all bones, starting with the skull and finishing with hands and feet. Should an anomaly be found an extensive detailed scan by an expert should be performed, as well as karyotyping and a consultation with pediatrician/surgeon. In case of a lethal anomaly, an option of pregnancy termination should be considered and if the parents decide against it, the pregnancy should be closely monitored, with parents fully counseled about the prognosis for the child. In this case the anomaly was noted only after the 30th week of gestation and even then only because the patient came because she had some subjective difficulties because of the excessive amniotic fluid volume. On the other hand, some skeletal dysplasias can be diagnosed only in the late second, early third trimester and sometimes stay unnoticed until the end of pregnancy. This case could not be resolved definitely, for the anomalies were conclusive neither of a specific genetic syndrome, nor of an isolated skeletal dysplasia. Extensive further examination of parents as well as their families is needed in order to be able to give some information about the risks in the next pregnancy. CONCLUSION: Although skeletal anomalies are extremely difficult to diagnose antenatally, a detailed scan of a complete fetal anatomy between 20 and 32 gestational weeks with special attention given to the entire skeleton, gives certain assurance of excluding majority of major skeletal dysplasias or enables their diagnosis and further adequate plan for pregnancy management.

[Malignant transformation of thyroid tissue in an ovarian dermoid cyst: case report]. / Maligna transformacija stitastog tkiva u dermoidnoj cisti jajnika: prikaz slucaja.

INTRODUCTION: Mature cystic teratoma is the most common type of ovarian teratomas and also the most frequent tumor originating from germ cells. Usually unilateral, it is, by definition, composed of well-differentiated derivates which originate from all three layers. It is most frequently diagnosed in the female reproductive period; in its pure form, it is generally benign, but occasionally it may undergo malignant transformation in one of its elements. CASE HISTORY: The authors report a case of a 43-year-old woman who underwent a thyroid regulation substitutive therapy 12 years after thyroidectomy which had been performed because of Basedow's disease. On the occasion of her fourth delivery by cesarean section, bilateral cystical formations in both ovaries were found. Upon ending the delivery, the right ovary with the cyst was surgically removed, as well as part of the cystically changed left ovary. The pathohistological analysis of the samples taken from the left ovary cyst pointed to the following diagnosis: dermoid cyst of the ovary a mature cystic teratoma, whereas the samples from the cystic tumor of the right ovary were diagnosed as: ovarian teratoma malignant a papillary carcinoma of the thyroid tissue and cystadenoma papillare serosum ovarii. The histological type of the malignant thyroid tissue neoplasm in the teratoma was a papillary carcinoma consisting of papillary proliferations lined by cuboidal, cylindrical and pseudostratified epithelium with charasteristic "ground glass" nuclei, but without invasion into the blood vessels. DISCUSSION: Malignant transformation of the ectopic thyroid tissue, which is one of the elements of the ovarian cystic teratoma, is extremely rare: it is diagnosed on basis of the histological picture and criteria which are the same as for the tumor of the thyroid gland. One should not exclude a pssibility that the identical or different pathological alterations characteristic of the thyroid gland may also be detected in the ectopic thyroid tissue of a dermoid cyst. CONCLUSION: The reported case was chosen due to its complex and rich clinical and pathohistological picture characterized by the occurrence of a bilateral dermoid cyst with the malignant transformation of the thyroid tissue. The malignant neoplasm in the mature ovarian cystic teratoma was papillary carcinoma of the thyroid tissue with all histological properties typical for the thyroid gland carcinoma. The possibility of the malignant transformation of the endodermal thyroid tissue in the mature ovarian cystic teratoma and changes in the thyroid gland of the Basedow's disease type diagnosed before are without clear causation.