Comparative immunohistochemical study of the stroma of serous and mucinous cystic neoplasms: possible histopathogenetic relationship of the 2 entities.

Objectives: Serous and mucinous cystic neoplasms (SCNs/MCNs) are the most common true cystic neoplasms of the pancreas and occur more frequently in women. The aim of this study was to characterize the stroma of SCNs to compare its phenotype with that of MCNs.

Methods: A total of 12 SCNs and 5 MCNs were analyzed immunohistochemically using the following antisera: progesterone receptor (PR), estrogen receptor (ER), inhibin, CD10, and vimentin. Normal pancreatic tissue (17 cases) and ductal adenocarcinomas of the pancreas (3 cases) were used as controls.

Results: Eight of 12 patients with SCNs and all 5 patients with MCNs were women. For SCNs, the stroma was sclerotic and paucicellular and showed focal moderate to strong reactivity for PR. Estrogen receptor, CD10, and inhibin were virtually negative. For MCNs, the stroma was more cellular and ovarianlike and showed a larger number of PR-positive cells with focal expression of ER and inhibin. Vimentin was expressed in all stromal cells in both groups.

Conclusions: Both SCNs and MCNs contain PR-positive stromal cells. In view of the aforementioned clinical and immunophenotypical similarities, we suggest that in SCNs and MCNs, the stromal framework is similar in origin and/or differentiation.