Surgery eliminated benign testicular mesothelioma in two men with the rare cancer, according to a case study.
The research, “Two Case Reports Of Benign Testicular Mesothelioma And Review Of The Literature,” was published in the journal Case Reports in Oncological Medicine.
Mesothelioma is a rare cancer that affects the mesothelial cells lining organs like the lungs, the pericardium — a sac that surrounds the heart — and the peritoneum, a membrane that covers the abdominal organs.
Mesothelioma usually affects people over 50 with a history of exposure to asbestos. Although mesothelioma is rare, the form of it that affects the testicles is even rarer.
Cristobal Ramirez Sevilla of the Mataro Hospital in Barcelona, Spain, and his team reported on two cases of benign testicular mesothelioma.
Case 1 was a 74-year-old man with alcohol-related liver disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, hypertension, peripheral vascular disease, and depression.
The patient was admitted to the hospital with a hernia and a reduction in the size of his left testicle. Analysis after surgical removal of the testicle led to a diagnosis of benign cyst mesothelioma of the peritoneum and testicular atrophy. Ten years after the surgery, an abdominal computed tomography (CT) scan showed no evidence of disease in the patient.
Case 2 was a 32-year-old man whose left testicle had become larger but who had no other symptoms. Medical evaluation detected a hydrocele, or abnormal build-up of fluids around the testicle.
After surgery, the patient was diagnosed with well-differentiated papillary mesothelioma of the tunica vaginalis, the membrane covering the testicles. Twenty-one years after surgery, a CT scan of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis showed the patient to be disease-free.
“Mesothelioma in the lining of the testicles is a rare form of an extremely rare cancer,” Sevilla and his colleagues wrote. “It typically develops over the age of fifty. Predisposing factors are testicular trauma, large history of hydrocele, or inguinoscrotal hernia. Life expectancy for pleural mesothelioma is worse than testicular mesothelioma.”
“The two cases reported are well-differentiated with good prognosis, one younger than the average age,” the researchers added. “Preoperative diagnosis of benign testicular mesothelioma is difficult. When intraoperative biopsy is performed and benignity is confirmed, local excision rather than [whole testicle removal] is recommended.”
