Argyrophilic cells in carcinoma of the female breast.

Argyrophilic hormone storage granules were sought in the tissue specimens obtained from 52 benign breast lesions (13 normal breasts, 27 cases of fibrocystic disease, 9 fibroadenomas, 2 intraductal papillomas, and 3 cases of gynecomastia) and from 90 adenocarcinomas of the female breast. No argyrophilic cells were found in the normal breast tissue or in the benign lesions studied. In three of the carcinomas (3.3%) such granules were found in the tumor cells. Using electron microscopy, the argyrophilic granules were shown to be of moderate or high electron density with an average diameter of 165 to 170 nm. Ectopic hormone production was not observed clinically in any of these three patients. The absence of argyrophilic cells in normal and benign ductal and acinar epithelium, and their occasional presence in breast carcinomas favors the concept of the histogenesis of these cells through genomic derepression during the course of neoplastic transformation.