Different patterns of heterogeneity in ovarian carcinoma.

Ovarian cancer is still the leading cause of death from malignant genital tract lesions. Ovarian carcinomas represent about 90% of cancers that arise in the ovaries and are commonly diagnosed around menopausal age. This study examines different aspects of the heterogeneity of ovarian carcinomas and included 50 cases, 10 cases for each subtype. Our data showed that tumor types have distinct morphological and phenotypic patterns: high- and low-grade serous carcinoma, endometrioid, clear cell and mucinous carcinoma. The different subtypes of ovarian carcinomas have different molecular, pathological and clinical characteristics, the histological diversity of epithelial ovarian carcinoma mirroring thus distinct entities not just one disease.