Ghost Cell (Shadow Cell)

Compartment: Adnexal Structures

Illustration of anucleate ghost cells with pale central outlines and pink cytoplasm arranged in sheets adjacent to basaloid matrix cells.
Ghost cells: anucleate keratinocytes with faint cellular outlines, pathognomonic for pilomatrixoma.

Definition: A keratinocyte that has lost its nucleus during abnormal keratinization, leaving a faint eosinophilic cellular “shadow” — pathognomonic for pilomatrixoma.

Clinical Context: Pilomatrixoma (pilomatricoma), Proliferating pilomatrixoma, Matrical carcinoma

Key Feature: Anucleate cell with a central pale area and pink cytoplasm, arranged in sheets adjacent to basaloid matrix cells.

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See this in a real case: Dermoid Cyst — Ruptured →