Carcinosarcoma of the breast: molecular-biological study for analysis of histogenesis

The histogenesis of carcinosarcoma of the breast is controversial. In the current case, the demarcation between the carcinomatous and sarcomatous components was distinct in all microscopic fields. Immunohistochemical analysis was negative for epithelial membrane antigen (EMA) and keratin in the sarcomatous component and was negative for desmin in the carcinomatous component, suggesting that this tumor could be derived from the two different stem cells. To determine the histogenesis of this tumor, both carcinomatous and sarcomatous lesions were microdissected from formalin-fixed tissues and DNAs were prepared by proteinase K digestion. PCR amplification of the human androgen receptor (HUMARA) short tandem repeat (STR), after Hpa II digestion of the genomic DNA, indicated that the patterns of X-chromosome inactivation were identical in both components. Moreover, both components contained the identical TGT --> TTT transversion in codon 275 of the p53 gene. These observations strongly support the hypothesis that this tumor is derived from a single totipotent stem cell.