Incidental Mesenteric Paraganglioma: A Case Report and Literature Review

• Published in: Annals of coloproctology Vol. 33; no. 5; pp. 197 - 200
• Main Authors: Granger, Jennie, Mahapatra, Roy, Hamid, Bushra, Gillespie, Katherine, Fok, Matthew, Vimalachandran, Dale
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Korea (South) The Korean Society of Coloproctology 01.10.2017; 대한대장항문학회
• Subjects: Case Report; 일반외과학; Abdominal surgery; Paraganglioma; Intra-abdominal tumor
• ISSN: 2287-9714; 2287-9722
• DOI: 10.3393/ac.2017.33.5.197

Mesenteric paragangliomas are a rare entity; consequently, only 12 cases have been reported to date. Although considered benign and often found incidentally, they have the potential to metastasize and are an important diagnosis to consider for patients with a mesenteric tumor. We report the case of a 71-year-old woman who was found on magnetic resonance imaging to have an incidental, large, complex, intra-abdominal mass that had initially been misdiagnosed as ovarian in origin. She underwent an open resection of the tumor and adjacent small bowel with no perioperative complications; histology confirmed the mass to be a mesenteric paraganglioma. This case report highlights several important key issues regarding paraganglioma, including diagnosis, imaging, genetic testing, and surgical resection. The results of a literature review are also discussed.