Spindle Cell Tumors of the Pleura and the Peritoneum: Pathologic Diagnosis and Updates

BAP1 Loss, Nuclear Grading, and Nonepithelioid Features in the Diagnosis of Mesothelioma in Italy: Nevermore without the Pathology Report

The pathologic diagnosis of pleural mesothelioma is generally based on international guidelines, but no compulsory points based on different drugs approvals in different European countries are required to be reported. According to the last (2021) edition of the World Health Organization classification of pleural tumors, the nuclear grade of epithelioid-type mesothelioma should be always inserted in the pathologic report, while the presence of BRCA-associated protein-1 (BAP1) (clone C4) loss and a statement on the presence of the sarcomatoid/nonepithelioid component are fundamental for both a screening of patients with suspected BAP1 tumor predisposition syndrome and the eligibility to perform first-line immunotherapy at least in some countries. Several Italian experts on pleural mesothelioma who are deeply involved in national scientific societies or dedicated working groups supported by patient associations agreed that the pathology report of mesothelioma of the pleura should always include the nuclear grade in the epithelioid histology, which is an overt statement on the presence of sarcomatoid components (at least 1%, in agreement with the last classification of pleural mesothelioma) and the presence of BAP1 loss (BAP1-deficient mesothelioma) or not (BAP1-retained mesothelioma) in order to screen patients possibly harboring BAP1 tumor predisposition syndrome. This review aims to summarize the most recent data on these three important elements to provide evidence regarding the possible precision needs for mesothelioma.

Spindle cell hemangioma of the lung: An unusual presentation

Spindle cell hemangioma (SCH) is a benign vascular tumour, first identified by Weiss and Enzinger in 1986. Habitually, the SCH affects almost exclusively the dermis and subcutaneous tissues of distal extremities. So far, only 2 cases have been described in the lung. We describe herein the third case of SCH occurring in the lung in a 47 year-old woman. The patient was successfully treated by right lower lobectomy. The histopathological and immunohistochemistry examination of the excised tumour leads to the definitive diagnosis. Our case is instructive by its different clinical and radiological presentation compared to the previous two cases.