In pathology

Pathology

Pathology is the precise study and diagnosis of disease. The word pathology is from Ancient Greek , pathos, "feeling, suffering"; and , -logia, "the study of". Pathologization, to pathologize, refers to the process of defining a condition or behavior as pathological, e.g. pathological gambling....

, serous carcinoma is an epithelial

Epithelium

Epithelium is one of the four basic types of animal tissue, along with connective tissue, muscle tissue and nervous tissue. Epithelial tissues line the cavities and surfaces of structures throughout the body, and also form many glands. Functions of epithelial cells include secretion, selective...

 malignancy (carcinoma

Carcinoma

Carcinoma is the medical term for the most common type of cancer occurring in humans. Put simply, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that generally arises from cells originating in the endodermal or ectodermal germ layer during...

) that arises from the lining of a cavity that produces a serum

Blood serum

In blood, the serum is the component that is neither a blood cell nor a clotting factor; it is the blood plasma with the fibrinogens removed...

-like fluid (a serous cavity).

Serous lined cavities include the peritoneum

Peritoneum

The peritoneum is the serous membrane that forms the lining of the abdominal cavity or the coelom — it covers most of the intra-abdominal organs — in amniotes and some invertebrates...

, pericardium

Pericardium

The pericardium is a double-walled sac that contains the heart and the roots of the great vessels.-Layers:...

 and pleural space and tunica vaginalis

Tunica vaginalis

The tunica vaginalis is the serous covering of the testis.It is a pouch of serous membrane, derived from the processus vaginalis of the peritoneum, which in the fetus preceded the descent of the testis from the abdomen into the scrotum....

.

Cytologic features

• Marked intragroup nuclear pleomorphism.
• Macronucleoli.
• "Knobby" group borders (in large groups).
• Hydropic vacuole
  Vacuole
  A vacuole is a membrane-bound organelle which is present in all plant and fungal cells and some protist, animal and bacterial cells. Vacuoles are essentially enclosed compartments which are filled with water containing inorganic and organic molecules including enzymes in solution, though in certain...
  
  s.

Differential diagnosis

The differential diagnosis of serous carcinoma not otherwise specified includes:

• Ovarian
  Ovary
  The ovary is an ovum-producing reproductive organ, often found in pairs as part of the vertebrate female reproductive system. Ovaries in anatomically female individuals are analogous to testes in anatomically male individuals, in that they are both gonads and endocrine glands.-Human anatomy:Ovaries...
  
   serous carcinoma, a type of ovarian cancer
  Ovarian cancer
  Ovarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from the ovary. Symptoms are frequently very subtle early on and may include: bloating, pelvic pain, difficulty eating and frequent urination, and are easily confused with other illnesses....
  
  .
• Uterine serous carcinoma, also known as uterine papillary serous carcinoma, a type of uterine cancer
  Uterine cancer
  The term uterine cancer may refer to any of several different types of cancer which occur in the uterus, namely:*Uterine sarcomas: sarcomas of the myometrium, or muscular layer of the uterus, are most commonly leiomyosarcomas.*Endometrial cancer:...
  
  .
• Fallopian tube
  Fallopian tube
  The Fallopian tubes, also known as oviducts, uterine tubes, and salpinges are two very fine tubes lined with ciliated epithelia, leading from the ovaries of female mammals into the uterus, via the utero-tubal junction...
  
   serous carcinoma, a type of uterine tube cancer.
• Cervical serous carcinoma, a rare type of cervical cancer
  Cervical cancer
  Cervical cancer is malignant neoplasm of the cervix uteri or cervical area. One of the most common symptoms is abnormal vaginal bleeding, but in some cases there may be no obvious symptoms until the cancer is in its advanced stages...
  
  .
• Primary peritoneal serous carcinoma, a very rare cancer that arise from the peritoneum
  Peritoneum
  The peritoneum is the serous membrane that forms the lining of the abdominal cavity or the coelom — it covers most of the intra-abdominal organs — in amniotes and some invertebrates...
  
  .

There has been the suggestion that the above diagnoses really represent one entity.