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Mucinous Cystic Neoplasms Lined by Abundant Mucinous Epithelium Frequently Involve KRAS Mutations and Malignant
Hideki Shibata1,2,3, Nobuyuki Ohike2, Tomoko Norose2
1Department of Pathology, Showa University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan hshibata@med.showa-u.ac.jp.
Background:
Pancreatic and hepatic mucinous cyst neoplasms (MCNs) have a malignant potential, but indolent MCNs are not uncommon.
Materials And Methods:
The pathological and genetic characteristics of resected MCNs (n=15) categorized by the amount of mucin of the lining epithelium were investigated.
Results:
MCNs were divided into two groups: (i) a rich (r)-MCN group (n=6), in which more than half of the epithelium was lined by abundant mucinous epithelium; and (ii) a poor (p)-MCN group (n=9), which consisted of the remaining cases. Three patients in the r-MCN group showed invasive carcinoma or high-grade dysplasia, whereas all patients in the p-MCN group showed low-grade dysplasia. Mutations of Kirsten rat sarcoma viral oncogene homolog (KRAS) were more frequent in the r-MCN group (83%) (p-MCN; 11%, p<0.05).
Conclusion:
Mucinous MCNs more frequently have KRAS mutations and higher risk of malignant progression.
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