Primary intranodal cellular angiolipoma

Angiolipoma is a distinct, benign soft tissue tumor that most commonly occurs in young males as multiple small, subcutaneous, tender to painful nodules with predilection for the forearms. We report a case of angiolipoma that developed within a lymph node. The patient was a 67-year-old man who underwent radical retropubic prostatectomy with diagnostic pelvic lymphadenectomy because of adenocarcinoma of the prostate. The prostate and 3 lymph nodes located in the obturator fossa were removed. On gross examination, the cut surface of 1 of the lymph nodes revealed an 8 x 5 mm, ovoid, sharply demarcated, nonencapsulated, gray lesion being suspicious for adenocarcinoma metastasis. Microscopically, the major portion of the lymph node was replaced by mature metaplastic adipose tissue. The angiolipoma was seen as a well-demarcated, nonencapsulated lesion composed of numerous small blood vessels lined by monomorphous flattened or spindled endothelial cells. Many vascular lumina were filled with fibrin thrombi. There were scanty mature adipocytes. Focally, areas with increased cellularity and a suggestion of solid growth of the endothelial cells were seen. Lymph nodes are known to be a rare primary site of various tumors usually occurring in other organs. The knowledge of these tumors is important in order not to interpret them as metastatic lesions. The most recognized examples are pigmented nevi, palisading myofibroblastoma, various benign epithelial inclusions, serous cystic tumors of borderline malignancy, and hyperplastic mesothelial inclusions. As we present in this report, angiolipoma is another neoplasm whose primary occurrence in the lymph node should not be misinterpreted as a metastatic tumor or malignant vascular tumor.