This case describes a 32-year-old female who presented to the hospital because of an abnormality in her chest X-ray. There was a slow-growing mass in her mediastinum for 1 year. However, she was asymptomatic at the time of her presentation. Her medical history revealed she had hyperthyroidism, treated with thiamazole.
On examination, the patient displayed normal vital signs. In addition, doctors ran some tests including RFTs, LFTs and CBC. All the tests were within normal ranges. Doctors did a CT scan that revealed a mass sandwiched between the patient’s left lung and pericardium. They diagnosed her with a benign mediastinal neoplasm, hence scheduling the patient for surgery.
Resection of the Mediastinal Tumor
Doctors prepped the patient for a video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. They resected the mass on the patient’s pericardium. Furthermore, the mass was encapsulated and the cut surfaces of the mass revealed a dense collagen network. The doctors put the specimen under extensive immunochemistry assays to make their final diagnosis. They labelled it as desmoplastic fibroblastoma.
Nevertheless, the patient’s post-operative events were unremarkable. She did regular follow-up CTs for 2 years. There was no recurrence in that period.
But What is a Desmoplastic Fibroblastoma? Is it common in Mediastinum?
It is a benign soft tissue neoplasm that commonly affects older people. Since it is rich in collagen fibres, it is also called a collagen fibroma. Moreover, it usually develops in the limbs, neck and trunk. However, our case describes a presentation of this tumour in the mediastinum which is highly rare.
