Esophageal cancer may be due to either squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) or adenocarcinoma (EAC). SCCs tend to occur closer to the mouth, while adenocarcinomas occur closer to the stomach. Dysphagia (difficulty swallowing, solids worse than liquids) and painful swallowing are common initial symptoms. If the disease is localized, surgical removal of the affected esophagus may offer the possibility of a cure. If the disease has spread, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are commonly used.

Primary squamous cell thyroid carcinoma shows an aggressive biological phenotype resulting in poor prognosis for patients.

Patients typically present with a non-productive cough and weight loss.

Basophilic, bland cells similar to acinar cells. Growth pattern: solid - acinar cells, microcytic - small systic spaces mucinous or eosinophilic, papillary-cystic - large cystic lined by epithelium, follicular - similar to thyroid tissue.

These tumors which resemble serous acinar cells vary in their behavior from locally aggressive to blatantly malignant.

It can also appear in the breast. The pancreatic form of acinic cell carcinoma is a rare subtype of exocrine pancreatic cancer. Exocrine pancreatic cancers are the most common form of pancreatic cancer when compared to endocrine pancreatic cancer.

Acinic cell carcinomas arise most frequently in the parotid gland. Other sites of primary tumors have included the submandibular gland and other major and minor salivary glands. There have been rare cases of primary tumors involving the parapharyngeal space and the sublingual gland.

Lung cancer is an extremely heterogeneous family of malignant neoplasms, with well over 50 different histological variants recognized under the 4th revision of the World Health Organization (WHO) typing system ("WHO-2004"), currently the most widely used lung cancer classification scheme. Because these variants have differing genetic, biological, and clinical properties, including response to treatment, correct classification of lung cancer cases are necessary to assure that lung cancer patients receive optimum management.

The WHO-2004 scheme groups lung carcinomas into 8 major types:

- Squamous cell carcinoma

- Small cell carcinoma

- Adenocarcinoma

- Large cell carcinoma

- Adenosquamous carcinoma

- Sarcomatoid carcinoma

- Carcinoid tumor

- Salivary gland-like carcinoma

EMECL is considered a subtype of salivary gland-like carcinoma, tumors so named because their histological appearance and characteristics closely resemble malignant neoplasms arising in the major and minor salivary glands.

Acinic cell carcinoma appears in all age groups, but presents at a younger median age (approx. 52 years) than most other salivary gland cancers. Occurrences in children are quite common.

Epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma of the lung (EMECL) is a very rare histologic form of malignant epithelial neoplasm ("carcinoma") arising from lung tissue.

Lung cancer is a large and exceptionally heterogeneous family of malignancies. Over 50 different histological variants are explicitly recognized within the 2004 revision of the World Health Organization (WHO) typing system ("WHO-2004"), currently the most widely used lung cancer classification scheme. Many of these entities are rare, recently described, and poorly understood. However, since different forms of malignant tumors generally exhibit diverse genetic, biological, and clinical properties — including response to treatment — accurate classification of lung cancer cases are critical to assuring that patients with lung cancer receive optimum management.

Under WHO-2004, lung carcinomas are divided into 8 major taxa:

- Squamous cell carcinoma

- Small cell carcinoma

- Adenocarcinoma

- Large cell carcinoma

- Adenosquamous carcinoma

- Sarcomatoid carcinoma

- Carcinoid tumor

- Salivary gland-like carcinoma

Salivary gland–like carcinomas of the lung generally refers a class of rare cancers that arise from the uncontrolled cell division (mitosis) of mutated cancer stem cells in lung tissue. They take their name partly from the appearance of their abnormal cells, whose structure and features closely resemble those of cancers that form in the major salivary glands (parotid glands, submandibular glands and sublingual glands) of the head and neck. Carcinoma is a term for malignant neoplasms derived from cells of epithelial lineage, and/or that exhibit cytological or tissue architectural features characteristically found in epithelial cells.

This class of primary lung cancers contains several histological variants, including mucoepidermoid carcinoma of the lung, adenoid cystic carcinoma of the lung, epithelial-myoepithelial carcinoma of the lung, and other (even more rare) variants. .

Swelling of the lymph nodes in the neck is the initial presentation in many people, and the diagnosis of NPC is often made by lymph node biopsy. Signs and symptoms related to the primary tumor include trismus, pain, otitis media, nasal regurgitation due to paresis (loss of or impaired movement) of the soft palate, hearing loss and cranial nerve palsy (paralysis). Larger growths may produce nasal obstruction or bleeding and a "nasal twang". Metastatic spread may result in bone pain or organ dysfunction. Rarely, a paraneoplastic syndrome of osteoarthropathy (diseases of joints and bones) may occur with widespread disease.

In many cases, ductal carcinoma is asymptomatic, and detected as abnormal results on mammography. When symptoms occur, a painless, enlarging mass that does not fluctuate with the menstrual period may be felt. Pinching of the overlying skin may also be seen. Certain subtypes, such as inflammatory carcinomas, may result in a swollen, enlarged and tender breast. All variants of cancer, if there is metastatic spread, may cause enlarged lymph nodes and affect other organs.

Invasive carcinoma of no special type (NST) is the most common form of invasive breast cancer. It accounts for 55% of breast cancer incidence upon diagnosis, according to statistics from the United States in 2004. On a mammogram, it is usually visualized as a mass with fine spikes radiating from the edges. On physical examination, this lump usually feels much harder or firmer than benign breast lesions such as fibroadenoma. On microscopic examination, the cancerous cells invade and replace the surrounding normal tissues. IDC is divided in several histological subtypes.

Signs and symptoms of TCC are entirely dependent on the location and extent of the cancer.

Lung cancers have been historically classified using two major paradigms. Histological classification systems group lung cancers according to the appearance of the cells and surrounding tissues when they are viewed under a microscope. Clinical classification systems divide lung cancers into groups based on medical criteria, particularly their response to different treatment regimens.

Before the mid-1900s, lung cancer was considered to be a single disease entity, with all forms treated similarly. In the 1960s, small cell lung carcinoma (SCLC) was recognized as a unique form of lung cancer, based both on its appearance (histology) and its clinical properties, including much greater susceptibility to chemotherapy and radiation, more rapid growth rate, and its propensity to metastasize widely early on in its course. Since then, most oncologists have based patient treatment decisions on a dichotomous division of lung cancers into SCLC and non-small cell lung carcinomas (NSCLC), with the former being treated primarily with chemoradiation, and the latter with surgery.

An explosion of new knowledge, accumulated mainly over the last 20 years, has proved that lung cancers should be considered an extremely heterogeneous family of neoplasms with widely varying genetic, biological, and clinical characteristics, particularly their responsiveness to the large number of newer treatment protocols. Well over 50 different histological variants are now recognized under the 2004 revision of the World Health Organization ("WHO-2004") typing system, currently the most widely used lung cancer classification scheme. Recent studies have shown beyond doubt that the old clinical classification paradigm of "SCLC vs. NSCLC" is now obsolete, and that correct "subclassification" of lung cancer cases is necessary to assure that lung cancer patients receive optimum management.

Approximately 98% of lung cancers are carcinoma, which are tumors composed of cells with epithelial characteristics. LCLC's are one of 8 major groups of lung carcinomas recognized in WHO-2004:

- Squamous cell carcinoma

- Small cell carcinoma

- Adenocarcinoma

- Large cell carcinoma

- Adenosquamous carcinoma

- Sarcomatoid carcinoma

- Carcinoid tumor

- Salivary gland-like carcinoma

MCC usually presents as a firm, painless, nodule (up to 2 cm diameter) or mass (>2 cm diameter). These flesh-colored, red, or blue tumors typically vary in size from 0.5 cm (less than one-quarter of an inch) to more than 5 cm (2 inches) in diameter, and usually enlarge rapidly. Although MCC's may arise almost anywhere on the body, about half originate on sun-exposed areas of the head and neck, one-third on the legs, and about one-sixth on the arms. In about 12% of cases, no obvious anatomical site of origin ("primary site") can be identified.

Merkel-cell cancers tend to invade locally, infiltrating the underlying subcutaneous fat, fascia, and muscle, and typically metastasize early in their natural history, most often to the regional lymph nodes. MCCs also spread aggressively through the blood vessels, particularly to liver, lung, brain, and bone.

Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) also urothelial carcinoma (UCC), is a type of cancer that typically occurs in the urinary system. It is the most common type of bladder cancer and cancer of the ureter, urethra, and urachus. It is the second most common type of kidney cancer, but accounts for only five to 10 percent of all primary renal malignant tumors.

TCC arises from the transitional epithelium, a tissue lining the inner surface of these hollow organs.

When the term "urothelial" is used, it specifically refers to a carcinoma of the urothelium, meaning a TCC of the urinary system.

Adenosquamous lung carcinoma (AdSqLC) is a biphasic malignant tumor arising from lung tissue that is composed of at least 10% by volume each of squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) and adenocarcinoma (AdC) cells.

Large-cell carcinoma (LCC) is a heterogeneous group of undifferentiated malignant neoplasms that lack the cytologic and architectural features of small cell carcinoma and glandular or squamous differentiation. LCC is categorized as a type of NSCLC (Non-Small Cell Carcinoma) which originates from epithelial cells of the lung.

Adenocarcinoma (; plural adenocarcinomas or adenocarcinomata ) is a type of cancerous tumor that can occur in several parts of the body. It is defined as neoplasia of epithelial tissue that has glandular origin, glandular characteristics, or both. Adenocarcinomas are part of the larger grouping of carcinomas, but are also sometimes called by more precise terms omitting the word, where these exist. Thus invasive ductal carcinoma, the most common form of breast cancer, is adenocarcinoma but does not use the term in its name—however, esophageal adenocarcinoma does to distinguish it from the other common type of esophageal cancer, esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. Several of the most common forms of cancer are adenocarcinomas, and the various sorts of adenocarcinoma vary greatly in all their aspects, so that few useful generalizations can be made about them.

In the most specific usage (narrowest sense), the glandular origin or traits are exocrine; endocrine gland tumors, such as a VIPoma, an insulinoma, or a pheochromocytoma, are typically not referred to as adenocarcinomas but rather are often called neuroendocrine tumors. Epithelial tissue sometimes includes, but is not limited to, the surface layer of skin, glands, and a variety of other tissue that lines the cavities and organs of the body. Epithelial tissue can be derived embryologically from any of the germ layers (ectoderm, endoderm, or mesoderm). To be classified as adenocarcinoma, the cells do not necessarily need to be part of a gland, as long as they have secretory properties. Adenocarcinoma is the malignant counterpart to adenoma, which is the benign form of such tumors. Sometimes adenomas transform into adenocarcinomas, but most do not.

Well differentiated adenocarcinomas tend to resemble the glandular tissue that they are derived from, while poorly differentiated adenocarcinomas may not. By staining the cells from a biopsy, a pathologist can determine whether the tumor is an adenocarcinoma or some other type of cancer. Adenocarcinomas can arise in many tissues of the body owing to the ubiquitous nature of glands within the body, and, more fundamentally, to the potency of epithelial cells. While each gland may not be secreting the same substance, as long as there is an exocrine function to the cell, it is considered glandular and its malignant form is therefore named adenocarcinoma.

Medullary carcinoma may refer to one of several different tumors of epithelial origin. As the term "" is a generic anatomic descriptor for the mid-layer of various organ tissues, a medullary tumor usually arises from the "mid-layer tissues" of the relevant organ.

Medullary carcinoma most commonly refers to:

- Medullary thyroid cancer

- Medullary carcinoma of the breast

Medullary carcinoma may also refer to tumors of:

- Pancreas

- Ampulla of Vater

- Gallbladder

- Stomach

- Large intestine

- Kidney — Renal medullary carcinoma

This particular variant of lung cancer is usually asymptomatic and is found after chest x-rays are taken for other reasons. Hemoptysis is seen occasionally and, in some cases, distal obstruction of bronchi by blood clots or mucus plugs produces cough and/or infection. Lesions often enlarge and progress slowly, over many years.

The 1999 World Health Organization classification system defined MCACL as a cystic adenocarcinoma with copious mucin production that, histologically, resembles (the more common) mucus-producing cystadenocarcinomas originating in the ovary, breast and pancreas. The 2004 revision of the WHO classification noted that the tumors tend to be well circumscribed by a partial fibrous tissue capsule with central cystic change and copious mucin pooling. The thin, fibrous wall circumscribing the tumor is highly characteristic of this lesion. It can sometimes occur within a pulmonary bronchocele, and this tumor entity should be kept in mind after identification of a bronchocele with suspicious or non-prototypical imaging characteristics.

Microscopically, the neoplastic epithelial cells tend to grow along the alveolar walls, in a fashion similar to the mucinous variant of bronchioloalveolar carcinoma, a more common form of adenocarcinoma.

Hemoptysis is seen occasionally.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanning can be of assistance in diagnosing MCACL, as these lesions show intense uptake, typically in the wall of the tumor.

CA 19-9 has been reported to be elevated in MCACL.

Differential diagnosis of MCACL includes secondary metastatic cystadenocarcinomatous lesions, particularly from the pancreas or ovary, mucoepidermoid carcinoma, and pulmonary mucinous bronchioloalveolar carcinoma. The mouse monoclonal antibody 1D3, developed to detect a high molecular weight mucin found in a number of cystic malignancies of various organs, may be of use in differentiating primary mucinous cystadenocarcinoma of the lung from metastatic lung tumors due to mucinous cystic lesions of the uterus and pancreas, as well as those primary in the colon and stomach.

Carcinoma is a type of cancer that develops from epithelial cells. Specifically, a carcinoma is a cancer that begins in a tissue that lines the inner or outer surfaces of the body, and that arises from cells originating in the endodermal, mesodermal and ectodermal germ layer during embryogenesis.

Carcinomas occur when the DNA of a cell is damaged or altered and the cell begins to grow uncontrollably and become malignant. It is from the Greek καρκίνωμα 'karkinoma' meaning sore, ulcer, or cancer, itself derived from "karkinos" 'crab'.

Several other terms for this lesion have been used in the past medical literature, including mucinous multilocular cyst carcinoma, pseudomyxomatous pulmonary adenocarcinoma, mucinous cystic tumor of low malignant potential, and others.

Many of the symptoms of NSCLC can be signs of other diseases, but having chronic or overlapping symptoms may be a signal of the presence of the disease. Some symptoms are indicators of less advanced cases while some may signal that the cancer has spread. Some of the symptoms of less advanced cancer include chronic cough, coughing up blood, chest pain, hoarseness, shortness of breath, wheezing, chest pain, weight loss, and loss of appetite. A few more symptoms associated with the early progression of the disease are feeling weak, being very tired, having trouble swallowing, swelling in the face or neck, and continuous or recurring infections like bronchitis or pneumonia. Signs of more advanced cases include bone pain, nervous system changes (headache, weakness, dizziness, balance problems, seizures), jaundice, lumps near the surface of the body, numbness of extremities due to Pancoast Syndrome, and nausea, vomiting and constipation brought on by hypercalcemia. Some more of the symptoms that indicate further progression of the cancer include shortness of breath, superior vena cava syndrome, trouble swallowing, large amounts of mucus, weakness, fatigue, and hoarseness.

Nasopharynx cancer or nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) is the most common cancer originating in the nasopharynx, most commonly in the postero-lateral nasopharynx or pharyngeal recess or 'Fossa of Rosenmüller' accounting for 50% cases. NPC occurs in children and adults. NPC differs significantly from other cancers of the head and neck in its occurrence, causes, clinical behavior, and treatment. It is vastly more common in certain regions of East Asia and Africa than elsewhere, with viral, dietary and genetic factors implicated in its causation. It is most common in males. It is a squamous cell carcinoma or an undifferentiated type. Squamous epithelial cells are a flat type of cell found in the skin and the membranes that line some body cavities. Differentiation means how different the cancer cells are from normal cells. "Undifferentiated cells" are cells that do not have their mature features or functions.