Histopathology of female genital tract

Female genital tract (FGT) biopsies are among the commonest in routine diagnostic surgical pathology practice. This includes a large number of distinct non-neoplastic and neoplastic entities of the ‘vulva’, ‘vagina’, ‘cervix’, ‘uterus’ and ‘ovaries’ along with the ‘placenta’. Endometrial curetting alone poses a diagnostic challenge on daily basis with markedly varied normal and abnormal patterns. A large number of benign and malignant neoplasms arising from all these anatomical regions may also pose a baffling scenario as at times microscopic features are subtle and overlapping, making distinction an uphill task. This is where judicious use of immunohistochemical stains may make a big difference to clinch the correct diagnosis. In this chapter this aspect is kept in mind, and those histopathological features are highlighted which may greatly help to eliminate close differentials and mimickers.