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Mediastinal Yolk Sac Tumor

  • Reference work entry
  • First Online:
Pathology of the Pleura and Mediastinum

Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Pathology ((EP))

  • 43 Accesses

Synonyms

Endodermal sinus tumor

Definition

Malignant germ cell tumor composed of primitive appearing epithelial tumor cells resembling yolk sac, allantois, and extraembryonic mesenchyme.

Clinical Features

  • Incidence

    Pure yolk sac tumor constitutes approximately 25% of malignant germ cell tumors of the mediastinum and may be seen as a component in mixed malignant germ cell tumors. It is the second most common pure malignant germ cell tumor after seminoma. If teratoma is also considered, the incidence of yolk sac tumor is around 11.5% of all germ cell tumors.

  • Age

    Mean age at presentation: 25–35 years.

  • Sex

    Almost exclusive male predominance.

  • Site

    Anterior mediastinum in association with thymus putatively from extragonadal germ cells or thymic cells with germ cell potential. However, in a patient presenting with embryonal carcinoma diagnosed as mediastinal mass, a thorough workup should be done to exclude testicular primary.

  • Clinical presentation

    Clinically, patients present weight loss,...

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References and Further Reading

  • Cox, J. D. (1975). Primary malignant germinal tumors of the mediastinum. A study of 24 cases. Cancer, 36(3), 1162–1168.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fox, M. A., & Vix, V. A. (1980). Endodermal sinus (yolk sac) tumors of the anterior mediastinum. AJR American Journal of Roentgenology, 135(2), 291–294.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Knapp, R. H., Hurt, R. D., Payne, W. S., et al. (1985). Malignant germ cell tumors of the mediastinum. The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, 89(1), 82–89.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Moran, C. A., & Suster, S. (1997). Primary germ cell tumors of the mediastinum: I. Analysis of 322 cases with special emphasis on teratomatous lesions and a proposal for histopathologic classification and clinical staging. Cancer, 80(4), 681–690.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Moran, C. A., Suster, S., & Koss, M. N. (1997). Primary germ cell tumors of the mediastinum: III. Yolk sac tumor, embryonal carcinoma, choriocarcinoma, and combined nonteratomatous germ cell tumors of the mediastinum – A clinicopathologic and immunohistochemical study of 64 cases. Cancer, 80(4), 699–707.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Truong, L. D., Harris, L., Mattioli, C., et al. (1986). Endodermal sinus tumor of the mediastinum. A report of seven cases and review of the literature. Cancer, 58(3), 730–739.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Pathology and Urology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, 1400 NW 12th Avenue, Room 4059, 33136, Miami, FL, USA

    Oleksandr N. Kryvenko

  2. Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

    Merce Jorda

  3. Department of Urology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

    Merce Jorda

Authors
  1. Oleksandr N. Kryvenko
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  2. Merce Jorda
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Oleksandr N. Kryvenko .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, The University of Mississippi Medical School, The University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, MS, USA

    Timothy Craig Allen

  2. Department of Pathology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, USA

    Saul Suster

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Cite this entry

Kryvenko, O.N., Jorda, M. (2018). Mediastinal Yolk Sac Tumor. In: Allen, T.C., Suster, S. (eds) Pathology of the Pleura and Mediastinum. Encyclopedia of Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66796-6_38

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-66796-6_38

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-66795-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-66796-6

  • eBook Packages: MedicineReference Module Medicine

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