The Teratoma reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Jul-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Teratoma

A teratoma is a type of tumour that derives from pluripotent germ cells. The word comes from a Greek term meaning roughly "monster tumor". Teratomas usually start from cells in the testes in men, the ovaries in women and in the sacrum in children. Teratomas involve cells from all three embryonic cell layers: ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm. They can be benign or malignant.

Teratomas often contain well-differentiated cells which can result in tissues growing in a teratoma which are quite different to the surrounding tissue—ovarian teratomas have been known to grow hair and teeth. Such a benign cystic teratoma is often termed a dermoid cyst. Testicular teratomas are generally less well-differentiated, and have a worse prognosis (chances of recovery are not as high).

Many teratomas secrete the "pregnancy hormone" human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), which can be used in clinical practice to follow-up successful treatment or relapse in patients with a known HCG-secreting teratoma. It is not recommended as a diagnostic marker.

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