Cutaneous Cytology

Question 1

what can cutaneous lesions be?

Answer 1

inflammation
cystic accumulation of noncellular material
neoplasia

Question 2

in whom are keratin-filled cystic lesions common?

Answer 2

dogs

Question 3

what are keratin-filled cystic lesions usually from?

Answer 3

follicular cysts
epidermal inclusion cysts

Question 4

what do aspirates of sebaceous cysts yield?

Answer 4

amorphous, waxy/greasy, non-staining material
may contain sebaceous cells

Question 5

what is calcinosis cutis?

Answer 5

deposits/plaques of calcium in the skin/subcutaneous or other tissues

Question 6

what is calcinosis circumscripta?

Answer 6

subtype of dystrophic calcinosis cutis

Question 7

what does calcinosis aspirate as?

Answer 7

white, granular/amorphous, colorless, chalky gross appearance
maybe macrophages/inflammation

Question 8

what are the five major types of cutaneous round cell tumors in skin?

Answer 8

plasmacytoma
histiocytoma
mast cell tumor
lymphoma
transmissible venereal tumor

Question 9

how can you identify lymphoma on cytology?

Answer 9

round cells with high N:C ratio
nuclei usually round to oval, vary
cytoplasm of lymphoblasts usually deeply basophilic
may have vacuolated cytoplasm

Question 10

when might lymphocytes be found in high numbers?

Answer 10

lymphoma
hyperplasia of focal lymphoid tissue
lymphocytic inflammatory infiltrate

Question 11

what is canine cutaneous histiocytoma?

Answer 11

neoplasm of langerhans cells

Question 12

what does canine cutaneous histiocytoma look like on a slide?

Answer 12

generic round cells
pale basophilic grainy cytoplasma
round to oval nuclei

Question 13

what do mast cells look like on cytology?

Answer 13

round cells with numerous purple-staining cytoplasmic granules

Question 14

how is staging of mast cell tumors done in dogs?

Answer 14

evaluation for metastasis
aspiration regional lymph nodes, spleen
evaluation of blood for circulating mast cells

Question 15

how is grading of mast cell tumors done in dogs?

Answer 15

evaluate tumor for malignancy
cytology: morphologic appearance of mast cells
biopsy grading
c-KIT mutation PCR

Question 16

does mast cell tumor morphology correspond to grade/malignancy in cats?

Answer 16

not always

Question 17

why are feline visceral mast cell tumors special?

Answer 17

some do not stain granules with standard stains

Question 18

where might plasmacytomas occur?

Answer 18

bone: myeloma
other sites: extramedullary

Question 19

what is the cytoplasm like in cells from plasmacytomas?

Answer 19

deep blue, may have perinuclear golgi zone

Question 20

what are the nuclei like in plasmacytoma?

Answer 20

round, eccentrically-located with clumped chromatin
binucleated and/or multinucleated cells often seen

Question 21

what are the characteristic locations of canine transmissible venereal tumor?

Answer 21

genitals
nasal region

Question 22

how many chromosomes do canine transmissible venereal tumor cells have compared to normal dogs?

Answer 22

57-64 instead of 78

Question 23

what do transmissible venereal tumors look like on cytology?

Answer 23

round cells with high mitotic rate and prominent nucleoli
high anisocytosis and anisokaryosis
punctuate cytoplasmic vacuolation often present

Question 24

what is the morphology of basal/basilar cell tumors?

Answer 24

basal cells high N:C ratio
form ribbons and/or grape-like clusters
may have associated pink matrix-like material
may contain large amounts of melanin in pigmented skin areas

Question 25

what do aspirates of sebaceous cell tumors often contain?

Answer 25

large 3D clumps of cells cells: small nuclei and cytoplasm with sebum vacuoles

Question 26

what do normal, mature squamous cells look like?

Answer 26

large, flat, polygonal cells

Question 27

what can squamous cells contain?

Answer 27

melanin granules

Question 28

what do well-differentiated tumor cells from squamous cell carcinoma look like?

Answer 28

normal squamous cells: large, flat, polygonal cells with smooth blue cytoplasm

Question 29

what is squamous cell carcinoma often accompanied by?

Answer 29

suppurative inflammation

Question 30

what is the N:C ratio like in squamous cell carcinoma?

Answer 30

lower than most carcinomas

Question 31

what are the common tumors in for perianal masses in dogs?

Answer 31

perianal (circumanal) gland tumors anal sac apocrine gland tumors

Question 32

what are the cells like in perianal (circumanal) gland adenomas?

Answer 32

clumbs, with abundant, granular cytoplasm and round nuclei resemble hepatocytes

Question 33

what do the cells in apocrine gland anal sac adenocarcinoma (AGASACA) look like?

Answer 33

bland-looking, indistinct borders and high N:C ratio usually few criteria of malignancy

Question 34

what can aspirates of anal sacs contain?

Answer 34

amorphous material keratinized squamous cells/keratin bacteria yeast

Question 35

what do mammary neoplasms arise from?

Answer 35

epithelial myoepithelial and/or stromal cells

Question 36

what percentage of feline mammary tumors are malignant?

Answer 36

80-90%

Question 37

what does melanoma produce?

Answer 37

brownish/greenish-black melanin granules

Question 38

what can be the appearance of melanoma cells?

Answer 38

epitheloid, round, or spindle-shaped

Question 39

poorly-differentiated melanomas usually have ____________________ nucleoli

Answer 39

large, prominent

Question 40

where might large amounts of melanin be found, other than melanoma?

Answer 40

basal cell tumors keratin-filled cystic lesions lymph nodes draining melanomas

Question 41

if cutaneous mesenchymal neoplasms appear benign, what are they called?

Answer 41

mesenchymal neoplasm

Question 42

what is usually required for definitive ID of cutaneous mesenchymal neoplasms?

Answer 42

histopathology

Question 43

if cutaneous mesenchymal neoplasms appear malignant, what are they called?

Answer 43

soft tissue sarcoma

Question 44

in whom is lipoma common in?

Answer 44

dogs

Question 45

what does aspiration of lipoma appear as grossly?

Answer 45

oily slide that does not dry

Question 46

what is an aspirate of lipoma essentially identical to?

Answer 46

normal adipose tissue

Question 47

what do variants of lipoma include?

Answer 47

infiltrative lipoma heemangiolipoma fibrolipoma

Question 48

____________ may get pedunculated lipomas in their abdomen, possible causing intestinal obstruction

Answer 48

horses

Question 49

what do liposarcomas usually appear as?

Answer 49

spindle/cell, similar to other sarcomas