We report a tubular adenoma of the esophagus in a 79-year-old man. The tumour had progressed to an intramucosal carcinoma at follow-up 6 months later. The adenoma displayed a peculiar and heterogeneous histological picture with non-dysplastic and cystic areas alternating with those of a typical tubular adenoma. The tumour revealed a strong and diffuse expression of cytokeratin 7 and basal cell cytokeratin, whereas cytokeratin 20 was focally positive only. The most remarkable finding, however, was the demonstration of intracytoplasmic inclusion-like mucoid bodies of the epithelial cells in a small area of the adenomatous component. These inclusions stained PAS positive and alcian blue negative, and electron microscopy revealed a homogeneous structure without viral-like particles.