Case Report: Osteoclastic giant cell-rich cervical squamous cell carcinoma-the first reported case of a clinically silent early-detected keratinizing subtype with a detailed literature comparison.

INTRODUCTION

We report the first case of an asymptomatic woman with osteoclast-like giant cell-rich cervical squamous cell carcinoma (OGC-rich cervical SCC), where the detection of cancer was made possible only by routine cytological screening. The presence of OGCs in cervical SCCs is an extremely rare phenomenon, with only 8 cases reported to date.

CASE DESCRIPTION

Two consecutive liquid-based cytology revealed high-grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (HSIL). Molecular testing detected HPV 18. Colposcopic findings strongly supported the clinical diagnosis of HSIL/suspicious for invasion. Histopathological examination of biopsy samples revealed typical keratinizing-type cervical SCC morphology. The patient subsequently underwent LEEP (loop electrosurgical excision procedure). Microscopic examination of resection specimen confirmed the previous diagnosis. Moreover, groups of large multinucleated cells were observed at the periphery of some invasive nests. Most of them presented the morphology of osteoclasts, whereas some giant cells were similar to Langhans cells. All the giant cells were positive for vimentin and CD68, negative for pancytokeratin. Owing to positive margins following the LEEP procedure, the patient underwent hysterectomy via the Wertheim technique. No adjuvant treatment was applied, and after the 9-month follow-up, the patient was alive with no recurrence.

CONCLUSION

Detailed literature review revealed that our case is the first case of keratinizing-subtype cervical OGC-rich SCC. Moreover, it is the youngest (33 yo.) patient with a significantly smaller diameter than previously reported cases. Unfortunately, owing to the small number of reported cases, the analysis did not allow us to draw conclusions about the potential prognostic or predictive value of OGC-rich morphology.