Endocervical glandular lesions: controversial aspects and ancillary techniques

Area of Science:

• Gynecologic Pathology
• Cervical Cancer Diagnosis
• Histopathology

Background:

• Rising incidence of malignant and premalignant endocervical glandular lesions.
• Diagnostic challenges and controversies in categorizing these lesions.
• Discrepancies in terminology between UK and World Health Organization (WHO) classifications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review controversial aspects of endocervical glandular lesion categorization and diagnosis.
• To describe morphology and histological subtypes of premalignant lesions.
• To discuss the distinction between benign mimics and malignant/premalignant lesions.

Main Methods:

• Review of current literature on endocervical glandular lesions.
• Discussion of histological features and diagnostic criteria.
• Evaluation of immunohistochemical markers for differential diagnosis.

Main Results:

• Detailed description of premalignant endocervical glandular lesion morphology and subtypes.
• Analysis of diagnostic difficulties in early invasive adenocarcinoma and invasion measurement.
• Identification of benign lesions mimicking malignant/premalignant conditions.
• Review of immunohistochemical antibodies for distinguishing endometrial vs. endocervical adenocarcinoma, adenoma malignum, and mesonephric lesions.

Conclusions:

• Accurate classification of endocervical glandular lesions requires understanding terminology differences and histological nuances.
• Immunohistochemistry plays a crucial role in differentiating benign mimics and specific subtypes of adenocarcinoma.
• Improved diagnostic strategies are needed to address the rising incidence of these lesions.