Korean Journal of Medicine  2008;74(6):676-679

Pedunculated subpleural lipoma with incomplete torsion: A case report.

Hyoung Jong KWAK 1 ; Eun Jung CHA ; Kyung Rak SOHN ; Ja Hong KUH ; Gong Yong JIN ; Myoung Ja CHUNG ; Kyu Yun JANG

Affiliations

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Keywords

Lipoma; Pleura; Torsion

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

Korean

Abstract

Lipoma is a common benign neoplasm, but lipoma arising from the pleura is rare. Most pleural lipomas are asymptomatic and are discovered incidentally on chest radiographs. Here we report an unusual case of a pedunculated subpleural lipoma with incomplete torsion in a 29-year-old woman who presented with flank pain. On chest radiography, there was a well-defined, ellipsoidal, homogeneous, radioopaque mass in the left lower lobe. An intrathoracic tumor was suspected, and video-assisted thoracic surgery was performed to establish the final diagnosis. The resected tumor was a 10 X 5 cm sized pedunculated pleural mass. The cut surface showed a yellow, well-circumscribed mass with areas of hemorrhage. Histologically, the tumor was composed of mature adipose tissue with fibrous septae composed of fibroblasts. The outer surface of the tumor was covered by mesothelial cells. Some areas were hypercellular, and occasional mitoses were found, but neither lipoblasts nor atypical mitoses were identified.