INTESTINAL METAPLASIA IN STILBESTROL-INDUCED VAGINAL ADENOSIS

We present an unusual case of vaginal adenosis with progressive intest inal metaplasia, previously undescribed, in a female patient exposed t o stilboestrol in utero. Argentaffin cells were present within these a reas, a feature not previously reported in benign vaginal adenosis. Th e development of the intestinal metaplasia coincided with the onset of a vaginal discharge so severe that, after 7 years, a vaginal resectio n was performed. Intestinal-type glands have been described in the cer vix and ovary, almost invariably associated with malignancy. The possi ble role of intestinal metaplasia in the development of enteric-type n eoplasms of the vagina is discussed.