Alveolar soft part sarcoma of the tongue. A case report of a rare entity / Sarcoma alveolar de partes blandas de la lengua. Informe de un caso de una entidad rara

Alveolar soft part sarcoma (ASPS) is a distinct soft tissue sarcoma among adolescent and young individuals. It accounts for 1 % of all sarcomas. It is a rare malignancy of the mesenchymal tissue that possesses an uncertain histologic origin. The increased vascular nature of this lesion leads to the dissemination of tumour cells through the connective tissue along the haematogenous route. Here we present a case of a swelling involving the tongue of a 19-year-old male patient and emphasize on the importance of diagnostic aids and management of this rare and unique lesion. (AU)

El sarcoma alveolar de partes blandas (ASPS, por sus siglas en inglés) es un sarcoma de partes blandas distinto entre los adolescentes y los jóvenes. Representa el 1 % de todos los sarcomas. Es una rara neoplasia maligna del tejido mesenquimatoso que posee un origen histológico incierto. El aumento de la vascularización de esta lesión conduce a la diseminación de células tumorales a través del tejido conjuntivo por vía hematógena. Aquí presentamos un caso de tumefacción en la lengua de un paciente masculino de 19 años y enfatizamos la importancia de las ayudas diagnósticas y el manejo de esta rara y única lesión. (AU)

Evaluation and Expression of Survivin in Potentially Malignant Lesions and Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Comparative Study.

Introduction Overexpression of survivin, an anti-apoptotic protein, has been associated with the progression of cancer, resistance to drugs, and a poor prognosis. The expression level of survivin indicates the progression of the disease, early recurrence, and a failure to respond to therapy. Our study was a retrospective analysis performed on archival specimens. Materials and methods The study included a total of 50 histopathologically proven cases of potentially malignant lesions and squamous cell carcinoma. Immunohistochemical staining was carried out using primary rabbit monoclonal antibodies to survivin (PathnSitu, Telangana, India) along with a horseradish peroxidase detection kit (Leica Biosystems, Maharashtra, India). The intensity of staining of survivin in the epithelium was determined, and the data obtained from potentially malignant lesions, oral squamous cell carcinoma, fetal tissue, and normal oral mucosa were compared. Results The expression of survivin was positive in 70% of the samples of oral squamous cell carcinoma followed by 50% from cases of leukoplakia, 20% of oral submucous fibrosis samples, and 10% of lichen planus samples (P < 0.05). Conclusion Malignant transformation of these potentially malignant lesions increases with increased expression of survivin. This expression of the anti-apoptotic protein might be an early phenomenon in the initiation and advancement of oral squamous cell carcinoma. The prognosis of oral squamous cell carcinomas becomes poorer with increased expression of survivin. Therefore, survivin might be helpful as an important therapeutic target because it is expressed more in tumor cells and absent in most adult tissues.

Verrucoid Variant of Invasive Squamous Cell Carcinoma in Oral Submucous Fibrosis: A Clinicopathological Challenge.

Verrucous carcinoma (VC) is an exophytic, low-grade, well-differentiated variant of squamous cell carcinoma. It is described as a lesion appearing in the sixth or seventh decade of life that has minimal aggressive potential and, in long-standing cases, has been shown to transform into squamous cell carcinoma. Oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) is a potentially malignant disorder, and about one-third of the affected population develop oral squamous cell carcinoma. The histopathological diagnosis of verrucous carcinoma is challenging, and the interpretation of early squamous cell carcinoma requires immense experience. Here we present a rare case of a 24-year-old male with OSMF transforming to verrucous carcinoma with invasive squamous cell carcinoma. Even though the case had a straightforward clinical diagnosis, the serial sectioning done for pathological diagnosis disclosed the squamous cell carcinoma.