Case Report
Primary mucinous cystadenoma of the spermatic cord within the inguinal canal
Author affiliations
1 Department of Pathology and Medical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, 1-10 Ami-dong, Seo-gu, Busan, 602-739, Republic of Korea
2 Department of Surgery, Kwang Hye Hospital, Busan, Republic of Korea
3 Department of Pathology, Kwang Hye Hospital, Busan, Republic of Korea
Citation and License
Diagnostic Pathology 2012, 7:139 doi:10.1186/1746-1596-7-139
Published: 8 October 2012Abstract
We report a hitherto not documented case of primary mucinous cystadenoma arising in the spermatic cord within the right inguinal canal of a78-year-old man. The tumor was painless, hard and mobile. A computed tomography scan on the pelvis revealed an oval shaped, low attenuation mass, measuring 5.0x2.5x2.1 cm, that was present adjacent to the vas deferens. Grossly, the excised mass was multicystic mucinous tumor, filled with thick mucoid materials. Microscopically, the cystic wall was irregularly thickened. The cystic epithelium commonly showed short papillae lined by a single layer of columnar to cuboidal mucinous epithelial cells without significant stratification or cytologic atypia. Goblet cells were also frequently present. Immunohistochemically, the neoplastic cells showed positive reaction to carcinoembryonic antigen, cytokeratin 20, CDX2, epithelial membrane antigen, and CD15. However, they were negative for PAX8 and Wilms’ tumor 1 protein. Pathological diagnosis was a papillary mucinous cystadenoma of the spermatic cord. Although mucinous cystadenoma in this area is extremely rare, it is important that these lesions be recognized clinically and pathologically in order to avoid unnecessary radical surgery.
Virtual slides
The virtual slide(s) for this article can be found here: http://www.diagnosticpathology.diagnomx.eu/vs/1720965948762004 webcite


