This section helps lead the clinician and pathologist through a differential diagnosis for an unknown primary presenting with cervical node metastases. The therapeutic section, however, relates only to squamous carcinoma and assumes that the primary physician has worked with the pathologist as described below to eliminate other possibilities that would require alternative therapies.

The pathologist plays a central role in evaluating an occult primary tumor. A thorough evaluation of an adequate specimen through histologic or immunohistochemical techniques, and, when appropriate, electron microscopy (EM) provides guidance for the clinical evaluation that ensues. A critical interaction should exist between the pathologist, oncologist, and primary physician.

The complexity of the pathologic evaluation tends to be inversely related to the degree of differentiation of the tumor. For instance, for well or moderately differentiated tumors, the pathologic diagnosis of an epithelial cancer is often readily apparent, in contrast to lymphoma, sarcoma, melanoma, or a germ cell tumor. Commonly used stains such as mucicarmine or diastase-sensitive Periodic Acid Schiff (PAS) can be important in confirming the diagnosis of certain tumors of gastrointestinal or renal origin.

If the clinician is faced with a male patient younger than 50 years with a poorly differentiated tumor, serum levels of bHCG and AFP should be obtained and specimens should be evaluated with immunohistochemical stains for bHCG and AFP. Certain of these tumors respond to platinum-based combination chemotherapy in a manner similar to extragonadal germ cell malignancies, and this group of patients should be so treated unless other alternative diagnoses are made.[1]

Special studies can help in differentiating more poorly differentiated tumors. Often, a generic distinction is important between a poorly differentiated tumor of epithelial, hematopoietic, neuroendocrine, or neuroectodermal origin (i.e., melanoma).

• Immunohistochemical:

  Immunohistochemical studies can be important in making these broad distinctions, in particular, studies that evaluate staining for keratins, leukocyte common antigen (LCA), and S-100, a neuroectodermal antigen expressed in melanomas.[2]

• Polymerase chain reaction:

  In patients with suspected nasopharyngeal carcinoma, DNA amplification of Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) genomes can be used for diagnosis with tissue provided by fine-needle aspiration biopsy. The presence of EBV in metastases from an occult primary tumor suggests the development of overt nasopharyngeal carcinoma.[3]

  Acinar spaces and microacini are seen with adenocarcinomas. Electron dense secretory granules are seen in tumors of neuroectodermal origin. Premelanosomes can be found in most amelanotic melanomas. But these features are generally associated with differentiation along a particular line. Often poorly differentiated tumors do not display such characteristics, and EM evaluation would be of little value. The use of EM may aid in distinguishing a primary diagnosis not obtained by light microscopy approximately 10% of the time.[4-6]

References

1. Hainsworth JD, Wright EP, Gray GF Jr, et al.: Poorly differentiated carcinoma of unknown primary site: correlation of light microscopic findings with response to cisplatin-based combination chemotherapy. J Clin Oncol 5 (8): 1275-80, 1987.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   
2. Battifora H: Recent progress in the immunohistochemistry of solid tumors. Semin Diagn Pathol 1 (4): 251-71, 1984.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   
3. Feinmesser R, Miyazaki I, Cheung R, et al.: Diagnosis of nasopharyngeal carcinoma by DNA amplification of tissue obtained by fine-needle aspiration. N Engl J Med 326 (1): 17-21, 1992.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   
4. Hanna W, Kahn HJ: The ultrastructure of metastatic adenocarcinoma in serous fluids. An aid in identification of the primary site of the neoplasm. Acta Cytol 29 (3): 202-10, 1985 May-Jun.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   
5. Herrera GA, Reimann BE: Electron microscopy in determining origin of metastatic adenocarcinomas. South Med J 77 (12): 1557-66, 1984.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   
6. Mackay B, Ordonez NG: The role of the pathologist in the evaluation of poorly differentiated tumors. Semin Oncol 9 (4): 396-415, 1982.  [PUBMED Abstract]
   
   

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