Review article PSEUDOMYXOMA PERITONEI AND MUCINOUS OVARIAN TUMORS

Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP) is a clinical condition characterized by copious amounts of mucinous ascites and mucinous peritoneal implants. Female patients with PMP often have synchronous ovarian and appendiceal tumors. Three pathohistological diagnostic categories of PMP are described as follows: peritoneal mucinous carcinomatosis (PMCA) which represents high-grade metastatic adenocarcinoma usually derives from the appendix or colon; peritoneal mucinous carcinomatosis with intermediate or discordant features (PMCA-I/D) which is characterized by peritoneal lesions composed of abundant extracellular mucus and epithelium showing focal proliferation and minimal atypia; and disseminated peritoneal adenomucinosis (DPAM) which represents an indolent proliferation of benign or minimally atypical neoplastic mucinous cells nearly always derive from a ruptured mucinous neoplasm of the appendix. The term PMP is not sufficiently specific to be used as a histopathological diagnosis. Acta Medica Medianae 2009;48(1): 46-49