A rare clinical case - Solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura

Our plain-English summary of A rare clinical case - Solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura, by A. Papadopoulos, I. Porfyridis, G. Christodoulides, et al (Respiratory Medicine Case Reports, 2015).

The study

• Authors: A. Papadopoulos, I. Porfyridis, G. Christodoulides, A. Georgiou
• Journal: Respiratory Medicine Case Reports
• Published: 2015;16:117-9
• Type of article: Case report
• Cited by: 5 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher · Free full text

Abstract

We present a case of a 58 years old man with a large heterogeneous and well circumscribed soft tissue mass arising from the right pleural surface, found at a computer tomography of his chest. This mass after complete resection through a right lateral open thoracotomy, proved to be a Solitary Fibrous Tumor, previously known as 'benign mesothelioma'. This tumor is usually discovered at routine chest X-rays since patients are either asymptomatic or report atypical symptoms. Only 10-20% of the published cases report a malignant solitary fibrous tumor, however, definite diagnosis can only be made after complete resection which is the proposed diagnostic algorithm for these cases.

In plain English

This article was a case report from Cyprus about one patient, a 58-year-old Caucasian man, with a solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura. The authors noted this tumor was historically called 'benign mesothelioma'. He came to an outpatient clinic with dull right-sided chest pain, moderate shortness of breath on exertion over the previous two weeks, and a dry chronic cough. His history was unremarkable apart from heavy smoking for more than 30 years. A chest X-ray showed a rounded mass. A CT scan showed a large, well-circumscribed mass arising from the right pleural surface, with no invasion of the chest wall or heart. A needle biopsy gave the diagnosis, which was confirmed after the mass was completely removed through open chest surgery. The removed mass measured 13 by 8 by 2.5 cm and weighed 480 g. Its cells stained strongly for CD34, bcl-2 and vimentin. The article did not mention asbestos. The authors concluded that this tumor can be benign or malignant, that the two can be told apart only after complete removal, and that patients need regular follow-up.

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 58-year-old Caucasian man seen at an outpatient clinic (authors from Nicosia General Hospital and Aretaeio Hospital, Cyprus); date of presentation not given
• Exposure: No asbestos or other occupational exposure is mentioned. The patient's history noted heavy smoking for more than 30 years.
• Main results:
  • CT showed a large right-sided, well-circumscribed mass arising from the pleural surface, with no local invasion of the chest wall or heart
  • Diagnosis was first obtained by transthoracic cutting needle biopsy and confirmed on the completely resected specimen
  • The encapsulated mass measured 13 by 8 by 2.5 cm and weighed 480 g
  • Tumor cells were strongly positive for CD34, bcl-2 and vimentin, which confirmed the diagnosis of solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura can be benign or malignant, that the distinction is only possible after complete resection (the standard approach), and that patients must be followed up regularly because some recur or spread

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Solitary Fibrous Tumor, Thoracotomy, Mesothelioma, Chest X-Ray.

Related studies

• Solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura: clinical characteristics, surgical treatment and outcome — P. Magdeleinat, M. Alifano, et al. (2002)
• Solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura. An immunohistochemical, electron microscopic and tissue culture study of a tumor producing insulin-like growth factor I in a patient with hypoglycemia — E.H. Strøm, F. Skjørten, et al. (1991)
• Solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura: an estimation of population incidence — T. Thorgeirsson, H.J. Isaksson, et al. (2010)
• Cytopathological features of solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura: a study of 5 cases — B. Weynand, P. Collard, et al. (1998)
• Solitary fibrous tumor of the pleura — A. Orki, A. Kosar, et al. (2008)
• Solitary fibrous tumors of the pleura: a case report and review of the literature — P. Mordenti, R. Di Cicilia, et al. (2013)

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