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Diagnosis: Granulosa Cell Tumor

Lab Animal volume 32, pages 22–23 (2003)Cite this article

Granulosa-theca cell tumors arise from the granulosa and theca cells of the ovarian follicle and are regarded as sex cord stromal tumors. They vary in the proportion of each type of cell present. Granulosa cell tumors always have some degree of thecal response, as the connective tissue component of the normal follicle undergoes a peculiar hyalinization analogous to the mature corpus atreticum and/or corpus albicans. Granulosa cell tumors may become malignant, but pure thecomas are usually benign.

Granulosa cell tumors can have different consistencies and compositions. They may be smooth or lobulated, and are often cystic and hemorrhagic, while thecomas are usually solid1,2. These tumors most commonly occur unilaterally and if they contain an abundance of fat are called “luteinized granulosa cell tumors”1.

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Figure 1: A granulosa cell tumor found in the left ovary of a 3.5-year-old female cynomolgus monkey.
Figure 2: Microscopic image of hematoxylin and eosin-stained neoplastic cells from the granulosa cell tumor in Fig. 1, showing round or oval nuclei and vacuolated cytoplasm.

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  1. Mobley is Assistant Vice President, Bioresources, Wyeth Research, 401 N. Middletown Rd., Pearl River, NY 10965.,

    Daphne Mobley DVM, DACLAM

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  1. Daphne Mobley DVM, DACLAM
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Correspondence to Daphne Mobley DVM, DACLAM.

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Mobley, D. Diagnosis: Granulosa Cell Tumor. Lab Anim 32, 22–23 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1038/laban0403-22

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