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Tailgut cysts are rare congenital lesions that arise from the failure of regression of the embryological tailgut. We report a case of neoplastic transformation of tailgut cyst to carcinoid tumor which is exceedingly uncommon.
Keywords: carcinoid tumor; synaptophysin; neuron-specific enolase; chromogranin A; tailgut cyst
A 74-year-old male was found to have a large incidental cystic presacral lesion on computerized tomography (CT) of the abdomen. He underwent an elective transperineal resection with coccygectomy. Histologic examination showed a cystic structure with regions demonstrating a simple epithelial lining (Fig. 1) interlaced with areas characterized by intestinal-type epithelium with mucinous elements (Fig. 2). A 0.5 cm focus of glandular proliferation imparting an organoid appearance was seen (Fig. 3), with cells showing diffuse reactivity for markers of neuroendocrine differentiation, namely...