A case of large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma of the uterine corpus

Abstract

We report a case of large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma, which is rare and difficult to diagnose using cytology alone.
A 57-year-old woman suspected of having invasive endometrial carcinoma with peritoneal dissemination found at laparotomy underwent total hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy. An enlarged residual tumor, massive pleural effusion, and ascites subsequently appeared, however, and the woman died three months later. Preoperative endometrial cytology showed clusters of atypical cells with large nuclei and few prominent nucleoli. Histology showed loosely arranged cohesive solid patterns. Immunohistology findings were positive for CD56, synaptophysin, and NSE. The possibility of large cell neuroendocrine carcinoma should thus be considered in the differential diagnosis of cytomorphologically poorly differentiated lesions.