Abstract

Female urethral adenocarcinoma is one of the rare tumors. It has been thought to arise in the paraurethral Skene's gland, the transitional epithelium of proximal urethra or the urethral diverticulum. This is to report a urethral adenocarcinoma developed in a 51 year-old patient who had a past history of suburethral abscess 7 years ago, and to discuss its possible histogenetic origin. The tumor was located in the urethral wall and revealed a centrifugal growth pattern toward the anterior wall of uterus and vagina and an upward extension to the bladder neck. The tumor was composed mostly of well differentiated adenocarcinoma and partly of signet ring cell carcinoma. The urethral and bladder epithelia were well preserved without cancerous or precancerous changes, and there was no urethritis glandularis nor cystitis glandularis. The secretary material of the neoplastic glands was weakly positive for prostate specific antigen (PSA) and prostate specific acid phosphatase (PSAP). Although the tumor cells themselves were not reactive to PSA and PSAP, the histologic findings suggest that the urethral adenocarcinoma arises in the paraurethral Skene's gland which had probably been the site of abscess in this patient.

• Keywords: Urethra;Adenocarcinoma;Paraurethral gland;Skene's gland