Pathologic Features
The gross examination usually shows a two to three centimetre pale grey, poorly defined tumour with associated haemorrhage and necrosis.
The microscopic features include: indistinct cell borders, mitoses, a variable architecture (tubulopapillary, glandular, solid, embryoid bodies - ball of cells surrounded by empty space on three sides), nuclear overlap, and necrosis. An important key to distinguish it from other tumors, such as seminoma (vacuolated),teratocarcinoma (3 differentiated germ layers), yolk sac tumor (Schiller-Duval bodies), and the seroli-leydig cell tumor (strings of glands), is that the embryonal carcinoma is "trying" to evolve into their next stage. So in the testicle, they are often observed as blue cells attempting to form primitive tubules.
Read more about this topic: Embryonal Carcinoma
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