Mucinous tumors of the ovary. III. Histochemical studies.

Abstract The mucopolysaccharides (MPS) produced by benign, borderline, and malignant mucinous tumors of the ovary were studied by a variety of histochemical techniques and were compared with those produced by endocervical and colonic epithelia. With the transition from cystadenoma to cystadenocarcinoma there was a shift in the production of acidic MPS from sulfated mucins to sialomucins. This is similar to the shift which occurs during the transition of adenomatous polyps of the colon to colonic carcinoma.