A giant cystic pheochromocytoma of the adrenal gland

Endocr Pathol. 2008 Summer;19(2):133-8. doi: 10.1007/s12022-008-9016-4.

Abstract

Adrenal pheochromocytomas are rare catecholamine-secreting tumors that originate from chromaffin cells in the adrenal medulla, and giant pheochromocytomas with cystic changes are particularly rare. We report a case of a 46-year-old man who presented with episodic hypertension and headache. Radiographic studies showed an 18-cm cystic mass in the left upper quadrant of the abdomen; further workups, which included light microscopy, immunohistochemical, and electron microscopic analysis, revealed a pheochromocytoma of the left adrenal gland. Cytogenetic analysis and genetic mutation analyses for von-Hippel-Lindau (VHL), rearranged during transfection (RET), and succinate dehydrogenase complex subunit B (SDHB) genes were also performed but failed to reveal any abnormalities within the tumor cells.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adrenal Gland Neoplasms / genetics
  • Adrenal Gland Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Adrenal Gland Neoplasms / surgery
  • Adrenalectomy
  • DNA Mutational Analysis
  • Headache / diagnosis
  • Headache / etiology
  • Humans
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Male
  • Microscopy, Electron
  • Middle Aged
  • Paraffin Embedding
  • Pheochromocytoma / genetics
  • Pheochromocytoma / pathology*
  • Pheochromocytoma / surgery
  • Tissue Fixation
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed