What is a common outcome of significant pleomorphism observed in cancerous tissues?

Significant pleomorphism in cancerous tissues refers to the observed variability in size and shape of cells, particularly in relation to their nuclei. A common outcome of this characteristic is variation in nuclear characteristics, which includes discrepancies in nuclear size, shape, and chromatin pattern. These variations often reflect anaplasia, a loss of differentiation where the tumor cells deviate from the normal cellular architecture and function. This pleomorphism is frequently associated with a higher grade of malignancy, indicating a more aggressive tumor that can lead to poorer clinical outcomes.

In contrast, other options like increased homogeneity of cell types or improved differentiation do not align with the concept of pleomorphism, as pleomorphism inherently involves diversity among cell characteristics. Additionally, decreased tumor aggressiveness is often associated with well-differentiated tumors that exhibit low pleomorphism, not those with significant variation in cellular traits. Therefore, observing variation in nuclear characteristics is indeed a hallmark of pleomorphic cancerous tissues.