Fine needle aspiration biopsy diagnosis of a splenic metastasis from a papillary serous ovarian adenocarcinoma

Abstract

Abdominal computed tomography (CT) revealed an asymptomatic, solitary splenic mass in a woman who had undergone hysterectomy and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy for papillary serous ovarian adenocarcinoma four years previously. CT-guided fine needle aspiration (FNA) biopsy of the mass demonstrated the presence of nests of malignant epithelial cells in papillary structures. The FNA diagnosis of metastatic ovarian adenocarcinoma was confirmed by histologic study of the splenectomy specimen. Five years later, following several courses of chemotherapy, the patient was in apparent good health. This case again illustrates the value of FNA biopsy in diagnosing lesions in deeply situated organs, such as the spleen.