Solitary fibrous tumour of the tongue

Our plain-English summary of Solitary fibrous tumour of the tongue, by A. Piattelli, M. Fioroni, C. Rubini (Oral Oncology, 1998).

The study

• Authors: A. Piattelli, M. Fioroni, C. Rubini
• Journal: Oral Oncology
• Published: 1998;34(5):431-4
• Type of article: Case report
• Cited by: 28 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Solitary fibrous tumour (SFT) is a neoplasm most often localised in the pleura and peritoneum. The tumour is composed of spindled fibroblastic cells arranged in a haphazard way. Recently SFT has been described in many locations. Only one case of oral SFT has been described in the cheek: this is the second case of an oral SFT located in the tongue. The differential diagnosis must be made from many soft tissue tumours. SFTs stain strongly, in almost all cases, for CD34.

In plain English

This article is a case report by authors from dental schools and a pathology department in Italy. It described one patient, a 66-year-old man, who had a painless lump on his tongue that had been present for about one year. The lump was removed under local anaesthesia. It was well demarcated, 1 cm across, and had a thin fibrous capsule. Under the microscope it was made of spindle-shaped cells with no obvious pattern. The tumour cells stained strongly for CD34 and more weakly for vimentin. They were negative for S-100, Factor VIII and cytokeratins. Only a few cells were positive for Mib-1, and staining for bcl-2 protein was strong and diffuse. The lesion was diagnosed as a solitary fibrous tumour. There was no recurrence at a four-year follow-up. The article notes that this tumour type, when found in the pleura or peritoneum, has also been called localised fibrous mesothelioma. It does not mention asbestos or any exposure of the patient. Citing a reference work, the authors concluded that careful microscopic examination is needed to predict how these tumours behave.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: case report (single patient)
• Who was studied: One 66-year-old male patient with a painless nodular tongue lesion present for about 1 year, seen in the authors' department. The authors are affiliated with the Universities of Chieti and Ancona, Italy. No date of the patient's visit is given.
• Exposure: No exposure was studied. The article does not mention asbestos or any occupational or environmental exposure of the patient.
• Main results:
  • The lesion was removed under local anaesthesia. The nodule was well demarcated, 1 cm in diameter, with a thin fibrous capsule.
  • Under the microscope, the lesion showed spindle-shaped cells with no obvious pattern and narrow vascular channels in a haemangiopericytoma-like pattern.
  • The tumour cells were strongly positive for CD34 and weakly positive for vimentin.
  • The tumour cells were negative for S-100, Factor VIII and cytokeratins.
  • Only a few cells were positive for Mib-1. Staining for bcl-2 protein was strong and diffuse, and a diagnosis of solitary fibrous tumour was made.
  • The patient had no recurrence at 4-year follow-up.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded, drawing on a cited reference work, that careful microscopic examination of cellularity, pleomorphism and mitotic activity is thought to be necessary to reliably predict the clinical course of these tumours.

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Neoplasm, Pleura, Peritoneum, Differential Diagnosis, CD34.

Related studies

• Solitary fibrous tumour of the tongue: a case report with immunohistochemical studies — Y. Yamashita, T. Satoh, et al. (2002)
• Steroid hormone receptor in pleural solitary fibrous tumours and CD34+ progenitor stromal cells — M. Bongiovanni, L. Viberti, et al. (2002)
• Metastatic pleural mesothelioma presenting with solitary involvement of the tongue: report of a new case and review of the literature — F. Zanconati, A. DelConte, et al. (2003)
• Tongue metastasis from a malignant diffuse mesothelioma of the pleura: report of a case — A. Piattelli, M. Fioroni, et al. (1999)
• Floor of mouth and tongue metastasis from malignant pleural mesothelioma — D. Kirke, K. Horwood, et al. (2010)
• Solitary fibrous tumour of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses — I. Alobid, L. Alós, et al. (2003)

Browse return to medical research.