Benign lymphangioendothelioma.

Abstract

We describe a 40-year-old white man with a red-brown, indurated plaque on the proximal aspect of his right thigh. The lesion had been present since birth, and the patient had a 20-year clinical history of recurrent cellulitis in the same area. The histopathologic features of the lesion included permeation of the dermis by flattened, endothelium-lined channels without cellular atypia, hemorrhage, or inflammation. The endothelial cells were stained intensely with monoclonal antibody anti-CD34 (clone MY10). In addition, antibodies to factor VIII antigen, HLA-DR, smooth muscle actin, ICAM-1, and the lectin Ulex europaeus labeled the luminal cells. The basement membrane of the channels stained with anti-type IV collagen and laminin. Desmin-positive cells were abundant adjacent to the channels. Factor XIIIa stained both mononuclear cells and occasional dendritic cells in the perivascular area. Ki-67 immunolabeling could not be demonstrated on fresh or frozen tissue. Electron microscopy revealed the presence of both tight junctions and a well-formed, continuous basement membrane but the absence of Weibel-Palade bodies.