title: Differential basement membrane composition in multiple epithelioid haemangioendotheliomas of liver and lung.
abstract: We report a case of epithelioid haemangioendothelioma involving both lung and liver. The tumour cells were positive for factor-VIII-related antigen. Immunohistochemical analysis of various basement membrane components in tumour tissue of lung and liver showed striking differences. In the liver tumour there was selective expression of collagen IV, with minimal and focal amounts of laminin and basement membrane-associated heparan sulphate proteoglycan. In the lung tumour nodules, in contrast, all these basement membrane components were present. These patterns of basement membrane expression closely resemble those of normal liver and lung basement membrane respectively. We suggest that this provides evidence that epithelioid haemangioendothelioma arises from local endothelial cell proliferation and that it supports the assumption of a multicentric rather than metastatic origin when multiple tumour deposits are found.
authors.affiliation: Pathologisches Institut der Universität, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nerlich
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Berndt
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Schleicher
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001485:Basement Membrane / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D011508:Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycans / Q000032:analysis; D003094:Collagen / Q000032:analysis; D005260:Female; D006390:Hemangioendothelioma / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D019812:Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycans; D006497:Heparan Sulfate / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000032:analysis; D009378:Neoplasms, Multiple Primary / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology*; D014841:von Willebrand Factor / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D011508:Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycans; D003094:Collagen; D019812:Heparan Sulfate Proteoglycans; D006497:Heparan Sulfate; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D014841:von Willebrand Factor