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Encyclopedia of Pathology pp 1–2Cite as

Mesothelioma

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Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Pathology ((EP))

Synonyms

Malignant mesothelioma

Definition

Malignant tumor arising from the serosal membrane of the tunica vaginalis.

Clinical Features

  • Incidence

    Uncommon tumor.

  • Age

    Mean age 60 years, patients are older than germ cell tumor patients. Rare cases have been reported in children (Khan et al. 1997).

  • Sex

    Male.

  • Site

    Mesothelioma arises from tunica vaginalis but envelops and invades the testicular parenchyma.

  • Treatment

    Radical inguinal orchiectomy is the treatment of choice. Retroperitoneal lymph-node dissection and postoperative radiotherapy or chemotherapy has been suggested.

  • Outcome

    It is an aggressive tumor, with high recurrence rate and metastatic disease.

Macroscopy

It is usually a solid mass causing thickening of the tunica vaginalis in the context of hydrocele with occasional papillae on the surface. The tumor may grossly involve the testis.

Microscopy

Paratesticular mesothelioma shows epithelial pattern in the majority of the cases (70%), or biphasic (30%). The sarcomatoid subtype is...

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References and Further Reading

  • Butnor, K. J., Sporn, T. A., Hammar, S. P., & Roggli, V. L. (2001). Well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma. The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 25, 1304–1309.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chekol, S. S., & Sun, C.-C. (2012). Malignant mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis testis. Diagnostic studies and differential diagnosis. Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, 136, 113–117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, M. A., Young, R. H., & Scully, R. E. (1995). Malignant mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis. A clinocopathological analysis of 11 cases with review of the literature. The American Journal of Surgical Pathology, 19, 815–825.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Khan, M. A., Ruri, P., & Devaney, D. (1997). Mesothelioma of tunica vaginalis in a child. The Journal of Urology, 158, 198–199.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ordonez, N. G. (1999). The immunohistochemical diagnosis of epithelial mesothelioma. Human Pathology, 30, 313–323.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Histopathology and Molecular Diagnostics, University Hospital Careggi, Florence, Italy

    Maria Rosaria Raspollini

  2. Pathology Service, Champalimaud Clinical Center, Lisbon, Portugal

    Antonio Lopez-Beltran

  3. Unit of Anatomic Pathology, Department of Surgery, Cordoba University Medical School, Cordoba, Spain

    Antonio Lopez-Beltran

Authors
  1. Maria Rosaria Raspollini
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  2. Antonio Lopez-Beltran
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Maria Rosaria Raspollini .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. NIJMEGEN, The Netherlands

    J.H.J.M. van Krieken

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Cite this entry

Raspollini, M.R., Lopez-Beltran, A. (2019). Mesothelioma. In: van Krieken, J. (eds) Encyclopedia of Pathology. Encyclopedia of Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28845-1_4843-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28845-1_4843-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-28845-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-28845-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

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