Hamartoma

Hamartoma is a tumor originating from a malformation of embryonic tissue.

Etymology

The term hamartoma is defined as a loan word from hamartia or Hamartia (Greek ἁμαρτία ) formed which called in medical terminology a local tissue defect as a result of embryonic maldevelopment of the germinal tissue. Actually the word hamartia from the language of Greek tragedy and the New Testament, where it does not meet the significance of dates, miss, miss the target or misconduct.

Properties

Hamartia is initially a collective term for tissue changes that are perceived as an aberration with local tissue surplus. Such tissue changes are considered to be benign. In contrast to conventional benign tumors, they have no growth autonomy. In rare cases, a malignant tumor may be composed of a hamartoma, however, form the Hamartoblastom is called.

Hamartomas are generated in the germinal tissue developmental disorders that lead to a dispersed localization of body tissues as tumor-like malformation during embryonic blastogenesis. Hamartomas can in principle occur anywhere - frequent localizations are particularly ovarian, skin, liver, lungs and brain.

A special form are hamartomartige neoplasms due to a possibly decades ago fetal inclusion of a former Gemini Fruit: start The embryonic pluripotent stem cells preserved in the surviving twin, to multiply and are relatively highly differentiated neoplasms such as milk teeth or hair arise at extremely atypical localization, such as for example in the abdominal cavity or in the skull.

Tissue-specific occurrence

In the eye, the iris hamartomas are called Lisch nodules. They are especially observed in neurofibromatosis.

An objective in the hypothalamic hamartoma ( hypothalamic hamartoma ) can trigger epileptic seizures. In some cases, these hamartomas produce the hormone GnRH (GnRH, gonadotropin-releasing hormones in English ), which in children premature onset of puberty ( precocious puberty ) triggers.

A nevus includes as a change of the skin - in addition to pigmented nevi - even hamartomas, eg as verrucous nevus.

Hamartomas of bone tissue called exostoses. In the lung hamartomas occurring cystic adenomatoid malformations are called.

Multiple occurrences

A multiple- occurrence of hamartomas is called Hamartose. A synonym is the term multiple Hamartose syndrome, including Cowden syndrome is counted. Sometimes, in hamartomas in several organ systems. The diseases in which this is the case are called, for historical reasons, according to the Greek word for lens ( φακός, phakós ) and because of lenticular changes of the ocular fundus in some of these diseases phakomatoses.