Tubular adenoma of the urinary tract: a newly described entity

Abstract

Tubular adenomas in the urinary tract with the same appearance as those in the gastrointestinal tract have not yet been described in the literature. We herein report 4 cases of tubular adenomas in the urinary tract encountered within our consult practice. This lesion was defined by the presence of a collection of small round tubular glands with intestinal-type epithelium showing moderate dysplasia, identical to the histology of tubular adenomas in the intestinal tract. Patients ranged in age from 37 to 63 years (mean, 45 years), with 3 of the 4 being male (male-to-female ratio, 3:1). The locations were urinary bladder, prostatic urethra and ureter with hematuria, polyps, and obstructive mass as their presentations, respectively. One lesion was large measuring 1.4 cm associated with pseudoinvasion as well as invasive adenocarcinoma. Immunohistochemically, the tubular adenomas stained positive for CDX2 and CK20, while negative for GATA3 and CK7. One case showed positive nuclear β-catenin staining. Tubular adenoma of the urinary tract is a rare lesion, and recognition of this entity will encourage further reports and help to better understand the relation of tubular adenoma to concurrent and subsequent urinary tract malignancies.