2.c Endometriosis

Endometriosis

Endometriosis

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Endometriosis is frequently identified deep in the cervical stroma. Less frequently, endometriosis can affect the cervical mucosa. Independently of its location, endometriosis is diagnosed using the same criteria, namely by identification of 2 following: endometrial glands, endometrial-type stroma and evidence of bleeding. However, the diagnosis of cervical endometriosis can be challenging because it needs to be distinguished from adenocarcinoma of the endocervix. Both can display mitotic activity and nuclear stratification. The presence of an endometrial-type stroma is a good clue for the diagnosis of endometriosis. The endometrial-type stroma should be diagnosed on morphological grounds only and not using immunohistochemical staining with CD10, because the normal cervical stroma can show positivity for CD10.