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A case of epithelioid trophoblastic tumour (ETT), occurring in a fallopian tube of a 39-year-old woman, is reported. The patient presented with a positive pregnancy test, but continued to have ‘periods’. A palpable right adnexal mass was noted that was confirmed on ultrasound. The mass was removed together with the uterus, omentum and associated ovary. Careful examination of the uterus revealed no evidence of either an antecedent tumour or intra-uterine pregnancy. Histologically, the tubal mass displayed sheets and islands of large, relatively uniform, mitotically active polyhedral cells, with surrounding necrosis. The immunoprofile of the tumour was atypical in that a-inhibin and epidermal growth factor were weakly positive, but other results were consistent with the diagnosis of ETT. The patient received a foreshortened course of standard EMACO (etoposide, actinomycin-D, methotrexate, vincristine, and cyclophosphamide) combination chemotherapy for high-risk gestational trophoblastic disease. Serum β-hCG fell from a pre-operative level of 52000U/mL to non-pregnant levels within two courses and she remains well and disease-free 12 months post-diagnosis.

It has been postulated that the recent world-wide increase in the incidence of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma (NHL) may have been caused by human infection with simian virus 40 (SV40) (a lymphotropic monkey virus that was introduced to man from contaminated poliovirus vaccines between 1955 and 1963); therefore, we set out to determine the incidence of SV40 DNA positivity in lymphoma samples from patients in Tasmania, Australia.

In 2004, the WHO added a new subgroup of pituitary adenoma, ‘atypical’ pituitary adenoma, which may be associated with aggressive behaviour. The features of this subgroup include an elevated mitotic index, Ki-67 index of >3% and extensive nuclear staining for p53. However these criteria have not been validated clinically.

The diagnosis of low and intermediate grade cribriform and papillary intraduct carcinoma including solid papillary intraduct carcinoma on fine needle biopsy (FNB) is controversial. Hence solid papillary intraduct carcinomas are often overcalled as invasive carcinoma or designated as ‘papillary lesions’ along with benign intraduct papillomas and invasive papillary carcinomas. The anatomical pathology department at St Vincent’s Hospital extracted all breast FNB cases from its database over a 6 year period which had been reported as suggestive of intraduct carcinoma on fine needle biopsy and had surgical follow up. The cases of solid papillary intraduct carcinoma were analysed using a worksheet of cytological diagnostic criteria for low and intermediate grade intraduct carcinoma. This worksheet was designed based on criteria extracted from the literature in combination with diagnostic criteria used at St Vincent’s Hospital.

The diagnosis of low and intermediate grade cribriform and papillary intraduct carcinoma including solid papillary intraduct carcinoma on fine needle biopsy (FNB) is controversial. Hence solid papillary intraduct carcinomas are often overcalled as invasive carcinoma or designated as ‘papillary lesions’ along with benign intraduct papillomas and invasive papillary carcinomas.

To present a case of oncocytic variant of papillary thyroid carcinoma and review the literature on this uncommon variant.

Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) are a heterogeneous group of lymphoid proliferations of varying clonal composition secondary to immunosuppression in solid-organ transplant. Most commonly are of B-cell in origin; T-cell lymphomas are rare (15% of all PTLD).

Herpes simplex lymphadenitis is a rare condition that is most commonly seen in immunocompromised patients. To date, less than 30 cases have been reported in the literature. It is most commonly seen in patients with haematological malignancy, especially with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. However, it can be associated with other neoplasms such as Hodgkin lymphoma, mantle and marginal zone B-cell lymphoma, acute and chronic myeloid leukaemia. Presentation can be varied from localised lymphadenopathy, generalised lymphadenopathy with or without a rash, and disseminated HSV infection with multiple organ involvement. Histologically, it shows areas of coalescing necrosis and inflammatory cell infiltrates including histiocytes and neutrophils. Multinucleate cells with ground glass nuclei and Cowdry type A intranuclear inclusions are diagnostic; the diagnosis can be confirmed with herpes simplex virus in-situhybridisation or immunohistochemistry. Differential diagnoses to consider include cat scratch lymphadenitis, mycobacterial tuberculosis lymphadenitis, Kikuchi-Fujimoto lymphadenitis, systemic lupus erythematosus, Hodgkin lymphoma and large cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Herpes simplex lymphadenitis is an important diagnosis which can mimic transformation of an underlying haematological malignancy. We present a case of a 68-year-old male with localised lymphadenopathy and history of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia.

We present a case report of an unusual tumour, a Schneiderian carcinoma [also known as a cylindrical cell carcinoma, transitional (cell) carcinoma, Ringertz carcinoma or respiratory epithelial carcinoma] which is classified by the WHO as a sinonasal non-keratinising squamous cell carcinoma (SCC).

Endometriosis is a common benign disease among woman of reproductive age, and affects the intestinal tract in 3–37% of all patients with pelvic endometriosis. It is well known for creating diagnostic pitfalls for pathologists. This case study reports a patient with endometriosis involving the caecum and terminal ileum. The endometriosis was focally lined by intestinal epithelium in the deep endometriotic glands embedded within intestinal wall. In addition, two mesenteric lymph nodes contained foci of endometriosis. The mass effect, deep-seated intestinal epithelium, and lymphatic spread of endometriosis to mesenteric lymph nodes, closely mimicked invasive well-differentiated adenocarcinoma of the intestine.

Neuroendocrine carcinoma of the breast is a rare, but distinctly recognisable entity. Characteristic pheno-typic architectural, cytological and staining patterns suggest the diagnosis.

Chronic lymphoproliferative disorders of natural killer (NK) cells is a recently described provisional entity in the World Health Organization (WHO) classification. It is characterised by a persistent increase in peripheral blood NK cells without a definite cause, often with bone marrow involvement. It occurs in adults with a median age of 60 years, has no association with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) and tends to follow a chronic clinical course. In contrast, aggressive NK-cell leukaemia has a median age of 42, is EBV related, more prevalent amongst Asians and other ethnic populations, and has a rapidly progressive course irrespective of treatment.