A psammoma body is a round collection of calcium, seen microscopically. The term is derived from the Greek word ψάμμος (psámmos), meaning "sand".
Cause
Psammoma bodies are associated with the papillary (nipple-like) histomorphology and are thought to arise from,
- Infarction and calcification of papillae tips.
- Calcification of intralymphatic tumor thrombi.
Association with lesions
Psammoma bodies are commonly seen in certain tumors such as:
- Papillary thyroid carcinoma
- Papillary renal cell carcinoma
- Ovarian papillary serous cystadenoma and cystadenocarcinoma
- Endometrial adenocarcinomas (Papillary serous carcinoma ~3%-4%)
- Meningiomas, in the central nervous system
- Peritoneal and Pleural Mesothelioma
- Somatostatinoma (pancreas)
- Prolactinoma of the pituitary
- Glucagonoma
- Micropapillary subtype of Lung Adenocarcinoma
Benign lesions
Micrograph of a psammomatous melanotic schwannoma with a psammoma body, as may be seen in Carney complex. H&E stain.
Psammoma bodies may be seen in:
- Endosalpingiosis
- Psammomatous melanotic schwannoma
- Melanocytic nevus
Appearance
Psammoma bodies usually have a laminar appearance, are circular, acellular and basophilic.
External links
Look up papillary in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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