Large pleural tumor revealed by severe hypoglycemia: Doege-Potter syndrome.

AIM: Doege-Potter syndrome is a rare condition consisting of a mesenchymal tumor, either benign or malignant, accompanied by severe hypoglycemia. The syndrome was first described independently by two American physicians, Karl Walter Doege (1867-1932) and Roy Pilling Potter (1879-1968), in 1930, but it was not before 1988 that it was associated with non-islet cell tumor production of insulin growth factor (IGF) that induces hypoglycemia as a paraneoplastic syndrome.

CASE PRESENTATION: We present the case of a 61-year-old woman with severe hypoglycemia that induced seizures. On the general check-up, a massive tumor occupying the lower part of left hemi-thorax was discovered. Initially, corticosteroids, glucose i.v. and high carbohydrate diet managed to prevent the severe blood glucose drop. Surgery exposed a massive well-defined pleural tumor. After surgical removal, blood glucose stabilized. Histological examination confirmed the fibrous tumor that proved to be malignant on immunochemistry.

DISCUSSION: The authors discuss other cases reported in the literature of this rare condition and its pathogenic mechanisms, the presented case being the first reported in Romania.

CONCLUSIONS

The clinician should be aware of the possible existence of a pleural tumor in a patient presenting an unexplained hypoglycemia because the surgical removal of the tumor can solve the clinical manifestations.