Intraprostatic adipose tissue

Abstract

Prostatic adenocarcinomas exhibiting extraprostatic exten-sion (EPE) have a worse prognosis when compared with those confined to the prostate.1 Criteria for EPE in prosta-tectomy specimens include involvement of adipose tissue by tumor, and in tumors associated with desmoplasia or in areas devoid of adipose tissue, extension of the tumor beyond the contour of the prostate constitutes EPE. The presence of tumor in adipose tissue in prostate needle biop-sies has been traditionally considered as evidence of EPE because intraprostatic adipose tissue was considered extremely rare2-4 or nonexistent.1Up to 2006, there are 3 large series dedicated to finding intraprostatic adipose tissue.2-4 Of the 614 prostates in these 3 studies, only 3 cases (0.48%) were found to con-tain adipose tissue. More recently, in a series of 427 pros-tates in 2009, 17 cases (3.98%) were demonstrated to have intraprostatic adipose tissue.5 The foci of adipose tissue in these 17 cases were small, consisting of 5 to 13 adipocytes and measured 0.1 to 1.5 mm. These are located in the peripheral zone or central zone