Paracardiac giant cystic desmoid tumour: Case report

Desmoid tumours, also called aggressive fibromatosis, are an extremely rare type of tumour arising from musculoaponeurotic tissues. Their etiology is still unknown. They are usually benign, but local invasion and relapsing are frequent. Here we report the case of a 45-year-old male patient with widespread invasion of a desmoid tumour involving superior-posterior mediastinum, retroperitoneum and right lumbocostal region. The tumour was inoperable because of important vascular and cardiac invasions. Despite the intra-abdominal location of most desmoid tumours, involvement of the superior mediastinum and their differential diagnosis among the retroperitoneal-mediastinal masses should be definitely kept in mind. Transthoracic ecocardiography should be considered as a first method for the assessment of mediastinal invasion. Copyright © 2013 by Türkiye Klinikleri