Ultrastructure and histochemical characteristics of dermal eccrine cylindroma (turban tumor).

Abstract

The dermal eccrine cylindroma (1), or so-called “turban tumor,” has a particularly striking histologic picture. The cords of tumor cells are surrounded by a dense zone of hyaline material whose origin has been in dispute for many years (literature reviewed by Crain and Helwig (1), Evans (4), Gates et al. (5), and Ronchese (21)). The nature of the hyaline material cannot be understood without a knowledge of the site of origin of the tumor, and this too is in dispute (1, 4, 5, 21). In this paper we shall report our histochemical and electron microscopic observations of lesions from a patient with multiple dermal eccrine cylindroma, stressing the epithelial origin of the tumor and the possible nature and source of the associated hyaline material.