A unique case of serous psammocarcinoma of the ovary presenting with pleural effusion and manifesting psammoma body implants in the pleural cavity and pericardium.

BACKGROUND

Psammocarcinoma is a subtype of serous ovarian carcinoma characterized by low-grade papillary atypia and psammoma body formation, presenting with abdominal distension, pelvic mass and/or ascites. Psammomatous carcinoma is rare, with few cases having been reported to date.

CASE: A 58 year old woman presented with one month of progressive shortness of breath. Initial chest X-ray showed extensive left pleural thickening and right-sided effusion. Thoracoscopy with biopsies of the pleura and pericardium revealed extensive psammoma body formation. Ovarian masses were detected on pelvic CT, without ascites, and subsequent biopsy revealed papillary tumors with low-grade cytological appearance.

CONCLUSION

This is a unique case of a rare ovarian carcinoma. Here we present clinical, laboratory, diagnostic, and pathologic findings of a previously undescribed presentation.