A pleural based mass in a post-partum woman

Can you diagnose this case of a 27-year-old female who presented 1-week post-partum with an incidental finding of intrathoracic masses and probable hilar lymphadenopathy? https://bit.ly/3S3ejVK.

Ectopic spleen presenting as a slowly enlarging lung nodule in the right lower lobe following gastric pull up operation

This is a case report of an elderly man who was investigated at our respiratory clinic for slowly enlarging right lower lobe lung nodule on the background of oesophageal cancer diagnosed more than 11 years ago with gastric pull up. CT guided biopsy confirms the diagnosis of intrathoracic ectopic spleen.

Symptomatic Intrathoracic Splenosis More than Forty Years After a Gunshot Injury

Thoracic splenosis is a rare heterotopic autotransplantation of the spleen into the thorax that occurs after trauma or surgery involving the spleen. It is most commonly found incidentally on imaging in the left hemithorax. To the best of our knowledge, only six symptomatic cases of thoracic splenosis have been described in the literature so far. We present a case of thoracic splenosis in a male with a remote history of a gunshot injury during childhood, who presented with chest pain and shortness of breath.

Thoracic splenosis: History is the key

Splenosis is an acquired ectopic autotransplantation of splenic tissue; that occurs after traumatic splenic rupture and splenectomy [1]. Splenosis is a rare but benign disease, and the diagnosis can be challenging as the multiple incidentally found nodules could mimic malignancy [2]. Abdominopelvic Splenosis is thought to occur in as many as 65% of cases of splenic rupture [1]. However, Thoracic Splenosis is rare and usually involve the left parietal and visceral pleura [1,2]. Intraparenchymal lesions are less common but have been reported in cases of parenchymal and diaphragm laceration [1,2]. Taking a thorough history is of utmost importance, as these patients usually present more than two decades after the splenic traumatic rupture. The use of commonly available nuclear studies will further confirm the diagnosis [3]. This will help to avoid unnecessary procedures, like biopsies; and prevent the potential complications. We present a case of Thoracic Splenosis that highlights the importance of taking a detailed history; and the importance of using nuclear studies for the diagnosis. Further adding to its uniqueness, this case showed with multiple intraparenchymal nodules which is a less common presentation of Splenosis.