Architectural pattern of gastric adenocarcinoma--a 3-dimensional reconstruction study.

The 3-D microstructure of various adenocarcinomas was studied by graphic reconstruction of tubules and lumina from serial sections in four gastrectomy specimens in order to contribute to better diagnosis of the lesion by establishing the morphology of atypical glands. The cell nests in the moderately differentiated type had multiple anastomoses with one another forming a network, a pattern different from arborescent normal glands, while the lumina were separated into many small vesicles, giving the nests a porous character. Well differentiated tumours had more connections between the lumina forming a luminal network, whereas in the poorly differentiated lesions the nests also began to split into fragments. These findings provided a new viewpoint from which to establish an architectural basis for the discrimination of dysplastic from overtly malignant lesions.