MORBID ANATOMY 



33 r 



well-defined nests in the stroma of the connective tissue, simu- 

 lating, perhaps, a cancerous appearance. The character of the 

 cells, which present a curiously vacuolated condition, would, 

 however, tend to eliminate this view. The vacuoles very in 

 number and size, the average number being i to 12 in a cell. 



In some preparations numerous leucocytes, of the mono- 

 nuclear and polynuclear varieties, had drifted away from the 

 nodule. They were for the most part elongated, and in all 

 the nucleus or nuclei appeared to be in a healthy condition. 

 The cells contained numerous eosinophiles, which took a deep 

 orange color with the Biondi-Ehrlich stain. In places adjacent 

 to these leucocytes there were frequently noticed a number of 

 these small bodies apparently lying free in the tissue. No 

 definite cell wall was distinguished in the leucocytes. 



The vacuolated cells are present in greater numbers than 

 the heavily laden leucocytes. In the former nuclei were pre- 

 sent and presented various phases of change. In some there 

 is a single nucleus, which may be circular, crescentic, or in 

 the form of a dumb-bell; in others there may be two or more 

 nuclei which in advanced cases appear only as remnants. In 

 extreme cases no nuclei at all are visible. The wall of the 

 wandering cell differs from that of the leucocytes proper in 

 possessing an appreciable, thickness. This thickened bound- 

 ary apparently gives considerable rigidity to the cells, as 

 nearly all of them are approximately circular in form. Their 

 average diameter is about 8 microns. In one specimen there 

 appeared to be large giant cells, measuring from 12 to iS 

 microns and apparently possessing quite a distinct cell wall. 

 Within each giant cell there is some appearance of vacuolated 

 cells, each with a single nucleus and fairly well-defined cell 

 boundary. As many as eight or ten of these nuclei have been 

 counted in a single giant cell. There is the possibility that 

 these apparent giant cells are simply some of the vacuolated 

 cells fused together, but the nuclei are well defined and take 

 the stain very intensely, which is not commonly the case in 

 the ordinary vacuolated cells. 



The connective-tissue cells surrounding the nodule show 



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