Nonfunctioning symptomatic paraganglioma: Is there an optimal follow-up for patients with extra-adrenal benign paragangliomas

Abdominal paraaortic paraganglioma: Management of intraoperative hemodynamic emergencies during elective resection procedures (A case presentation)

Paragangliomas are extremely rare neuroendocrine tumors. We report a case of a 44-year-old man with hypertension who presented a tumoral mass located retroperitoneally at the aortic bifurcation which included both the common iliac arteries and the posterior left iliac vein, who experienced an unpredictable intraoperative cardiac arrest with electromechanical dissociation at 5 min after laparotomy. After successful resuscitation and hemodynamic stability, the lesion was fully excised. In the course of tumor manipulation, the patient developed a major hypertensive crisis with peak systolic blood pressure over 280 mmHg. Pathologic examination revealed the presence of diffuse proliferation of large and medium-sized mature adipocytes consistent with paraganglioma diagnosis. The patient was discharged at home on the seventh postoperative day. He did not present evidence of recurrence at the one-year follow-up. In conclusion, paragangliomas can require particular management due to their location but also due to their capacity to discharge substances which might induce life-threatening intraoperative complications.

Asymptomatic Presacral Paraganglioma: Management of an Unpredictable Intraoperative Finding

Paragangliomas are rare neuroendocrine tumors originating from the embryological neural crest. We report a rare case of a patient with an asymptomatic presacral mass (incidentaloma) who experienced an unpredictable intraoperative hypertensive crisis after manipulation of the tumor. Presacral neoplasms pose a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge due to their obscure anatomical location and the difficulty in performing an R0 excision. Furthermore, the management of asymptomatic paragangliomas requires a high level of clinical suspicion and expertise due to potential life-threatening intraoperative complications.

Spectrum of retroperitoneal and genitourinary paraganglioma: Experience at a North Indian tertiary care center

Introduction

Genitourinary and retroperitoneal paragangliomas are infrequent tumors with bizarre presentation. A high index of suspicion is required to make a diagnosis in young hypertensive individuals. Our aim is to study the varied clinical presentations and management of these paragangliomas. Herein, we share our experience of clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management of these paragangliomas.

Material and methods

Seventeen consecutive patients who underwent surgery for paraganglioma at our institute from August 2009 to July 2014 were included. Demographic, peri-operative, surgical, and follow up data were collected and analyzed.

Results

Mean age of presentation was 34.8 years with female predominance. The majority of the tumors were located in the retroperitoneum and urinary bladder. Most of them presented with classical symptoms of catecholamine excess and hypertension. Complete surgical resection could be performed in 13 cases. At a median follow up of two years, cases with R0 resection (no microscopic malignant cells) did not show recurrence. Among patients on chemotherapy, one died, another had partial response, and yet another had progressive disease.

Conclusions

Genitourinary and retroperitoneal paragangliomas are a disease of a young age group with variable clinical features at presentation. Appropriate pre-operative optimization and complete surgical resection provide the best chance of cure.