Rosettes are little round groupings of cells found in tumors. They usually consist of cells
in a spoke-wheel or halo arrangement surrounding a central, acellular region. Rosettes
are so named for their resemblance to the rose windows found in gothic cathedrals
(check out the beautiful rose window in the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Strasbourg).
There are a bunch of different kinds of rosettes, each with different types of cells and
different names. Most of them are found in tumors of the nervous system. It’s useful to
be able to recognize these, because they help with the diagnoses of difficult tumors.
Plus, somebody will definitely ask you about them on some pathology exam
somewhere.
Let’s take a look at the four main kinds of rosettes. You’ll want to remember what each
type of rosette looks like, what’s in the lumen (if anything), and which tumors it is found
in.