Urinary System

Flat non-invasive carcinoma Flat invasive carcinoma

Morphologic patterns of bladder tumor
Papilloma-papillary carcinoma Invasive papillary carcinoma

The delicate papilla is covered by orderly transitional epithelium.

Low-grade papillary urothelial carcinoma of the bladder


This bladder was removed surgically from a male who had a long history of smoking. He had presented with hematuria. The opened bladder reveals masses of a neoplasm that histologically proved to be transitional cell carcinoma (TCC). TCC can arise anywhere in the urothelium, but is most common in bladder. TCC is often multifocal and has a tendency to recur.
Exophytic TCC of urinary bladder

At high power, the transitional cell carcinoma does resemble urothelium, but the thickness is much greater than normal and the cells show more pleomorphism.
Papillary TCC

The cut surface of the kidney removed surgically here demonstrate normal cortex and medulla, but the calyces show focal papillary tumor masses of transitional cell carcinoma.
Papillary TCC of renal pelvis