A Stellar Case of Splenic Hydatid Cyst.

Hydatid disease, also known as hydatidosis or echinococcosis, is a zoonotic infection caused by cestode, namely Echinococcus granulosus (tapeworm). Humans are the incidental hosts that acquire the infection by being in contact with infected animals or through the fecal-oral route via contaminated feces. Hydatid disease of the spleen is a zoonotic disease of rare occurrence. Most often, the patients do not have any specific symptoms except dull dragging pain in the abdomen. In some unfortunate cases, the patient may present with an acute abdomen or anaphylactic shock state due to rupture of the cyst, which is a medical and surgical emergency. The mainstay of treatment remains albendazole and praziquantel medically, along with surgery, i.e., splenectomy. A 30-year-old female presented in the OPD with complaints of pain in the abdomen for the last two years with no other complaints. The pain did not respond to regular analgesics and antacids. The patient was admitted for further evaluation. A contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) abdomen was done for the patient, which showed splenomegaly along with features suggestive of a splenic hydatid cyst. The lady was taken for a planned splenectomy. The histopathological features were suggestive of a hydatid cyst of the spleen. The mainstay of treatment is medically anthelmintic medications and surgical splenectomy along with the puncture aspiration injection re-aspiration (PAIR) technique.

Histopathological Diagnosis of a Case of Mucin-Secreting Adenocarcinoma of the Appendix.

Mucin-secreting adenocarcinoma of the appendix is a very rare, slow-growing, mucin-producing epithelial neoplasm of the appendix. It is usually found accidentally in an appendicectomy specimen with the presentation of acute appendicitis in most patients or when there is a rupture of the primary tumor with the mucin spreading along with the tumor cells in the entire peritoneal cavity. Here we describe a case of low-grade (well-differentiated) mucin-secreting adenocarcinoma in the appendix. A 48-year-old female presented with complaints of abdominal distension with no other complaints of fever, pain, or breathlessness. Carcinoembryonic antigen levels were 44.8 ng/mL. Cytoreduction surgery of bilateral ovaries was done. The final histopathological diagnosis was reported as low-grade (well-differentiated) mucin-secreting adenocarcinoma of the appendix staged at pT4b pNx pM1c. Pseudomyxoma peritonei is a very feared complication and also, at times, the only presenting symptom where there is an accumulation of mucin in the intra-abdominal cavity due to the spread of mucin-secreting cells, which in turn causes an increase in the abdominal girth along with discomfort for the patient. The mainstay of treatment remains cytoreductive surgery along with hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy.