Molar Pregnancy – Hydatidiform Mole

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Hydatidiform Mole aka Molar pregnancy is cause by implantation and proliferation of a non-viable fertilized ovum. Characteristics are that of throphoblastic proliferation and Vesicular swelling of the chorionic villi.

Sonographically you’ll see an enlarged , round uterus with many cystic spaces classically referred to as “bunch of grapes” 🍇.

There are two types of molar pregnancies

Complete mole has a diploid genotype (46XX, 46 XY) it lacks fetal tissue. Complete hydatidiform moles have a 2–4% risk of developing into choriocarcinoma in Western countries and 10–15% in Eastern countries and a 15% risk of becoming an invasive mole.

hCg usually >100,000

Case 1

Complete mole transverse and sagittal images showing an enlarged, round uterus with a complex multi cystic endometrial complex. Hcg was 25,344

Case 2

Incomplete moles have Triploid genotype (69XXY, 69XXX) usually contains fetal/embryonic tissue/cells. hCg usually <100,000

<5% become invasive

Case 3

References:

1. “Gestational Trophoblastic Disease”. American Cancer Society. 14 April 2011.
2. Cotran RS, Kumar V, Fausto N, Nelso F, Robbins SL, Abbas AK (2005). Robbins and Cotran pathologic basis of disease (7th ed.). St. Louis, Mo: Elsevier Saunders. p. 1110. ISBN 0-7216-0187-1.
3. Kumar V, ed. (2010). Pathologic Basis of Disease (8th ed.). Saunders Elsevier. pp. 1057–1058. ISBN 978-1-4377-0792-2.
4. Di Cintio E, Parazzini F, Rosa C, Chatenoud L, Benzi G (November 1997). “The epidemiology of gestational trophoblastic disease”. General & Diagnostic Pathology. 143 (2–3): 103–8. PMID 9443567.