Carcinoid tumor of the uterine cervix. A light and electron microscopic study.

A case of carcinoid tumor of the uterine cervix is reported. The patient was a 76-year-old Japanese woman with a complaint of vaginal bleeding. She was clinically diagnosed as stage IVb carcinoma of the uterine cervix. Light microscopically, the tumor was characterized by formation of solid cell nests and, in limited areas, glandular structures. The tumor cells in solid cells nests showed positive argyrophil reaction but were negative for argentaffin reaction. At the ultrastructural level, the cytoplasm of the tumor cells contain numerous neurosecretory granules, microfilaments and well-developed Golgi complexes. On the bases of histochemical and electron microscopic features of tumor cells, the tumor was diagnosed as carcinoid tumor of the uterine cervix.