Well differentiated (benign) papillary mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis

Our plain-English summary of Well differentiated (benign) papillary mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis, by R. Chetty (Journal of Clinical Pathology, 1992).

The study

• Author: R. Chetty
• Journal: Journal of Clinical Pathology
• Published: 1992;45(11):1029-30
• Type of article: Case report
• Cited by: 38 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

An unusual mesothelial lesion occurred in the tunica vaginalis of the testis. It conformed histologically and immunohistochemically to well differentiated papillary mesothelioma of the peritoneum. Its aetiology remains uncertain, but this lesion, more than likely, is innocuous. It is important to recognise this entity, which is not well documented in the tunica vaginalis, because it may be misdiagnosed as a malignant mesothelioma and the patient may be subjected to unnecessary treatment.

In plain English

This article was a case report by a pathologist describing one patient with a rare growth called well differentiated papillary mesothelioma in the tunica vaginalis, the membrane lining around the testis. An 18 year old man had a scrotal swelling that had grown over a period of weeks. There was no history of trauma or of exposure to asbestos. A large right hydrocele, a collection of fluid, was found. About 150 ml of straw-coloured fluid was drained, but the fluid came back, so surgery was performed and two nodules were removed from the tunica vaginalis. Under the microscope the cells looked uniformly bland and no mitotic activity (cell division) was seen. The tumour cells stained positive for cytokeratin and epithelial membrane antigen and negative for CEA and Leu M-1. Twelve months later the patient was well. The author wrote that such lesions are probably not associated with asbestos exposure and that their cause is not clear. The author concluded that the lesion was more than likely innocuous. The author also wrote that it needs to be recognised so that it is not misdiagnosed as malignant mesothelioma and treated unnecessarily.

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 (single patient)
• Who was studied: one 18 year old man with a scrotal swelling; the article does not state where or when he was seen (the author's affiliation is the University of Cape Town Medical School, South Africa)
• Exposure: no history of trauma or of asbestos exposure was reported for the patient
• Main results:
  • Initial drainage of the hydrocele produced about 150 ml of straw-coloured fluid
  • The hydrocele reaccumulated, and surgery removed two nodules from the tunica vaginalis
  • The lesion's cells were uniformly bland and no mitotic activity was seen
  • The tumour was positive for cytokeratin and epithelial membrane antigen (EMA)
  • The tumour was negative for carcinoembryonic antigen (CEA) and Leu M-1
  • The patient was well and without symptoms twelve months after surgery
  • The author wrote that this type of lesion is probably not associated with asbestos exposure and that its precise cause is not clear
• The authors' conclusion: The author concluded that the lesion is more than likely innocuous. The author also wrote that it is important to recognise it because it may be misdiagnosed as malignant mesothelioma, which could lead to unnecessary treatment.

Topics

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

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Well-Differentiated Papillary Mesothelioma, Tunica Vaginalis, Peritoneum, Malignant Mesothelioma.

Related studies

• Well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma of tunica vaginalis testis of unknown malignant potential: Sonographic appearance — K.W.S. Ko, K.S. Tse, et al. (2018)
• Well-Differentiated Papillary Mesothelioma of the Tunica Vaginalis: Case Report and Systematic Review of Literature — W.K. Tan, M.Y. Tan, et al. (2016)
• Case Report of a Well-Differentiated Papillary Mesothelioma of the Tunica Vaginalis in an Undescended Testis With Review of Literature — P. Parcesepe, S. Sina, et al. (2016)
• Well-differentiated Papillary Mesothelioma of the Tunica Vaginalis — W.K. Tan, M.Y. Tan, et al. (2016)
• Well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis: a case study and review of the literature — S. Erdogan, A. Acikalin, et al. (2014)
• Papillary serous carcinoma of the tunica vaginalis testis — P. Becerra, M.A. Isaac, et al. (2000)

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