Multimodal Imaging of Mediastinal Epithelioid Hemangioendothelioma: Two Case Reports.

INTRODUCTION: Epithelioid Hemangioendothelioma (EHE) is a rare vascular neoplasm that typically occurs in the bone, soft tissue, liver, and lung but rarely in the mediastinum. Multimodal imaging of EHE is poorly understood, often leading to misdiagnosis as other mediastinal tumors.

CASE PRESENTATION: Two female cases with incidental mediastinal masses were retrospectively analysed, focusing on multimodal presentations. For both cases, CT studies showed well-defined, low-density oval masses in the right anterior superior mediastinum with the Superior Vena Cava (SVC) invasion. Intralesional punctate calcifications were observed in Case 2. MRI revealed hypointense masses on T1WI and slightly hyperintense on T2WI, with partial diffusion restriction on DWI. Case 1 had mild enhancement, while Case 2 had significant enhancement. PET-CT showed significant FDG uptake with maximum standardized uptake values (SUVmax) of 9.2 and 5.1, respectively. Both patients underwent surgical resection, with pathology confirming mediastinal EHEs.

CONCLUSION: Mediastinal EHE presents as a well-defined soft-tissue mass with punctate calcifications and heterogeneous enhancement, typically located in the anterior mediastinum with invasion into medium or large veins. Moreover, it should be considered in the differential diagnosis of mediastinal tumors.