GI Pathology Flashcards
What is Sialadenitis?
inflammation of a salivary gland. It may be subdivided temporally into acute, chronic and recurrent forms.
What are the causes of sialadenitis?
Infectious (viral - mainly parotids- and bacterial, mainly submandibular) and
non-infectious (Sjogren syndrome, sarcoidosis, radiation)
What is the most common pathogen in bacterially-related sialadenitis? Viral?
Staph aureus (and strep viridans)
Viral: mumps
Describe acute sialadenitis
It typically affects the parotid gland, causing the gland to become swollen and painful. Purulent discharge drains from the duct
Describe chronic sialadenitis
This usually occurs secondary to recurrent or persistent ductal obstruction due to a stone (sialolithiasis) resulting in episodic pain and swelling, usually at mealtime
◦Submandibular involvement may include persistent enlargement
What is this?
Oral hairy leukoplakia- This pathology is associated with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and occurs mostly in people with HIV, both immunocompromised and immunocompetent, albeit it can affect patients who are HIV negative
It most often occurs on the lateral aspect of the tongue, and, unlike thrush, it can not be scraped off
How does OHL appear histologically?
- Hyperkeratosis (gives it the white appearance)
- Acanthosis
- “balloon” cells in the upper spinous layer
Define leukoplakia
“a white patch or plaque that cannot be scraped off and cannot be characterized clinically or pathologically as any other disease.” (a diagnosis of exclusion)
Note that leukoplakia is considered premalignant until proven otherwise (even though only 5-25% actually are)
What pts. does oral leukoplakia most commonly occur in?
smokers and those who use chewing tobacco
Typically males, aged 40-70
What is the prognosis for oral leukoplakia?
Leukoplakia is a premalignant lesion. The chance of transformation into oral SSC varies from almost 0% to about 20%, and this may occur over 1 – 30 years. The vast majority of oral leukoplakias will not turn malignant, however some subtypes hold greater risk than others.
No interventions have been proven to reduce the risk of cancer developing in an area of leukoplakia, but people are generally advised to stop smoking and limit alcohol consumption to reduce their risk.
Where are some other places besides the mouth that leukoplakia can occur?
- esophagus
- bladder
- penis, vulva, vagina, or cervix
What are aphthous ulcers (canker sores)?
Superficial mucosal ulcerations more common in younger pts. that typically resolve within 7-10 days
What factors are associated with herpes reactivation?
trauma, allergies, UV light (sunburn), URTIs, immunosupression, stress, etc.
Describe the histology of herpes
Molding, Multinucleation, and Eosinophilic Inclusions
What are the three major types of oral candidiasis?
- pseudomembranous (thrush)
- eryhtematous
- hyperplastic
How does oral candida present?
Superficial, curdlike, gray to white inflammatory membranes composed of matted organisms enmeshed in an exudate that can be esily scrapped off to reveal and underlying erythematous base.
Describe fibromas of the oral cavity
These are modular fibrous tissue masses that are formed when chronic irritation results in reactive CT hyperplasia, most commonly occuring on the buccal mucosa along the bite line
What are oral pyogenic granulomas?
oral masses usually found on the gingiva of children, young adults, and pregnant women. These lesions are highly vascular and often erythematous appearing.
These tend to grow fastly but are typically benign and surgical excision is curative
What is erythroplakia?
red, velvety, possibly eroded areas that are flat or depressed relative to surrounding mucosa that are less common than leukoplakia, but are associated with a much greater risk of meligant transformation to OSCC
Approximately 95% of cancers of the head and neck are________
squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). With the remainder being largely adenocarcinomas of salivary glands
Head and neck cancers have a BAD prognosis (Typically advanced stage when diagnosed; not amenable to screening)
In the oropharynx (but not the oral cavity), as many as 70% of SCCs, particularly those involving the tonsils, the base of the tongue, and the pharynx, harbor oncogenic variants of ______
HPV, particularly HPV-16. Those with HPV positive cancers have greater long term survival.
Oral SCCs
Multiple primary tumors may be present at initial diagnosis but more often are detected later, and tend to develop at a risk of 3-7%/yr. Note that the development of secondary primary tumors is a particularly poor prognosis and typically leads to death (survellance is important!)
How do OSCCs arise?
Two distinct pathways:
1) chronic alcohol or tobacco users typically produce tumors arising from mutations in TP53, p63, and NOTCH1
2) tumors arising in the tonsillar crypts or the base of the tongue related to HPV variants, particularly HPV-16 (most commonly overexpression of p16, a cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor)
T or F. The prognosis of HPV-positive OSCCs is better than for HPV-negative tumors
T.
What are the most common locations for an OSCC to arise?
can arise anywhere but most commonly on the ventral surface of the tongie, the floor of the mouth, lower lips, the soft palate, and gingiva
OSCC
OSCC
Note that OSCC develop from dysplastic precursor lesions
How do OSCCs progress?
typically, they infiltrate locally before they MET (most commonly to cervical lymph nodes)
What drugs can produce xerostomia?
anticholinergic (salivation is parasympathetically driven!)
-antidepressants/antipsychotics
diuretics
AntiHTNs
more
What is the most common cause of viral sialadenitis?
Mumps (paramyxovirus), which primarily affects the parotids
What is a mucocele?
The most common inflammatory lesion of the salivary glands, resulting from either blockage or rupture of a salivary gland duct, with consequent leakage of saliva into the surrounding CT stroma
Note that it typically presents as a swelling of the lower lip that may change in size, particularly around meals
What pts do mucoceles most commonly occur in?
toddlers, young adults, and the elderly
What is Sialolithiasis?
obstruction of a salivary gland by stones- dehydration and decreased secretory function may predispose to infection
What is the most common salivary gland for a tumor to arise?
parotid (65-80%)
T or F. The likelihoof that a salivary gland tumor is malignant is inversely proportional to the size of the gland (roughly)
T. Up to 70-90% of sublingual (the smallest) gland tumors are malignant while only 15-30% of parotid tumors are
When do slivary gland tumors most commonlu occur?
usually in adults (but can occur in children)
What are the most common BENIGN salivary tumors?
pleomorphic adenomas (50%)
Warthin tumor (5%)
What are the most common MALIGNANT salivary tumors?
Mucoepidermoid carcinomas (15%)
Acinic cell carcinomas of adenocarcinoma NOS (6% each)
Describe pleomorphic adenomas
These are painless, slow-growing mobile masses found in the parotids mostly that are composed of a mixture of both epithelial and myoepithelial cells (aka mixed tumor)
What mutations are common in pleomorphic adenomas?
overexpression of PLAG1
What is the prognosis of pleomorphic adenomas?
These tend to recur is incompletely excised and CAN transform into a malignant mixed tumor (transformation increases with time from 2% at 5 yrs to about 15% at 15 yrs). If they do turn malignant, they have a very poor prognosis
Notice how pleomorphic adenomas are typically rounded, partially encapsulated, and where unencapsulated have protrusions into surround tissue