Localized benign mesothelioma of the pleura: case report and review of the literature

Our plain-English summary of Localized benign mesothelioma of the pleura: case report and review of the literature, by H. Seggewiss, K. Minami, R. Körfer (The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon, 1986).

The study

• Authors: H. Seggewiss, K. Minami, R. Körfer
• Journal: The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon
• Published: 1986;34(5):330-2
• Type of article: Case report
• Cited by: 4 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

Localized benign mesothelioma of the pleura is a rather uncommon disease with good prognosis after successful tumor extirpation. We present the history of a 66-year-old patient, in whom tumor growth could be observed retrospectively over a period of 6 years. The tumor was extirpated successfully. On the basis of this history and a review of the literature epidemiologic, clinical, radiologic, pathological and prognostic criteria of the tumor are described.

In plain English

This article reported one patient's case and reviewed earlier published literature on localized benign mesothelioma of the pleura. The patient was a man whose chest X-ray in 1979 first showed a shadow about the size of a plum, and its growth was documented until 1982. In September 1985 he developed right-sided chest pain and fever, and fluid drawn from his chest contained blood. During a thoracoscopy, surgeons found a tumor sitting on the diaphragm and connected to the chest-wall lining, and removed it whole. It weighed 260 g, measured up to 8 cm, and proved under the microscope to be a solitary benign pleural mesothelioma. An X-ray three months later showed no sign of the tumor returning. The article did not report whether the patient had been exposed to asbestos. In the review section, the authors stated, citing other studies, that unlike diffuse malignant pleural mesothelioma, this tumor has no relationship with asbestos exposure. The authors concluded that localized pleural tumors should be confirmed by tissue examination after surgical removal.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: Case report of one patient combined with a review of the literature
• Who was studied: One male patient, treated in 1985 at a heart center in Bad Oeynhausen, West Germany (FRG)
• Exposure: No asbestos exposure was reported for the patient. In the review section, the authors stated, citing other studies (references 6, 7 and 8), that unlike diffuse malignant pleural mesothelioma, localized benign pleural mesothelioma has no relationship with asbestos exposure.
• Main results:
  • In 1979 a chest X-ray of the patient first showed a shadow described as about as large as a plum. Growth on X-ray was documented until 1982.
  • In September 1985 the patient had right-sided chest pain, with a rectal temperature of 39.1 degrees C.
  • Fluid drawn from the patient's chest (pleural effusion) contained blood.
  • At thoracoscopy the tumor was found sitting on the diaphragm and connected with the parietal pleura.
  • The encapsulated tumor was removed as a whole.
  • The patient's tumor weighed 260 g and had a maximum diameter of 8 cm.
  • Under the microscope the patient's tumor was a solitary benign pleural mesothelioma with some regressive changes in its central part.
  • An X-ray of the patient 3 months after surgery showed no sign of recurrent tumor.
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that, because of the range of possible diagnoses and the differences in outlook, the diagnosis of localized pleural tumors should be confirmed by tissue examination after surgical removal of the tumor.

Topics

The National Library of Medicine indexes this study under subjects our site covers: Mesothelioma.

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelioma, Pleura, Prognosis.

Related studies

• A case of giant benign localized fibrous tumor of the pleura — M. Biçer, S. Yaldiz, et al. (1998)
• Benign localized mesothelioma of the pleura — J.P. Janssen, S.S. Wagenaar, et al. (1985)
• Benign localized fibrous tumor of the pleura: report of 25 new cases — S. Enon, D. Kilic, et al. (2012)
• Localized fibrous tumours of the pleura: 15 new cases and review of the literature — M. Suter, S. Gebhard, et al. (1998)
• Localized malignant mesothelioma, an unusual and poorly characterized neoplasm of serosal origin: best current evidence from the literature and the International Mesothelioma Panel — A.M. Marchevsky, A. Khoor, et al. (2020)
• Benign cystic mesothelioma of the peritoneum in a child-case report and review of the literature — V.C. Shakya, C.S. Agrawal, et al. (2011)

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