Medical image of the week: solitary fibrous tumor

Abstract

A 68 year old female with a history of resected lung cancer and new onset joint pain and swelling presented for evaluation. Imaging revealed a right intrapleural mass and resection confirmed solitary fibrous tumor (SFT) of the pleura (benign). The patient experienced resolution of her joint pain, which was due to pulmonary hypertrophic osteoarthropathy, shortly after resection. Although not present in our patient, tumor induced hypoglycemia (Doege-Potter syndrome) can also be seen in SFTs. Solitary fibrous tumors are uncommon neoplasms of mesenchymal tissue, and can originate from either visceral or parietal pleural surfaces. Though they can grow to large size before clinical detection, the majority are benign, and can be treated with en bloc surgical resection