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Accessory liver lobe in the left thoracic cavity
1Division of Thoracic Surgery, Ankara Guven Hospital, Ankara, Turkey. serdarhan1@yahoo.com
The Annals of Thoracic Surgery
|May 26, 2009
Summary
A rare case of thoracic accessory liver in a young woman is presented. This asymptomatic liver tissue in the chest cavity, detected via imaging, was surgically removed and confirmed as normal hepatic tissue.
Area of Science:
- Hepatology
- Thoracic Surgery
- Diagnostic Imaging
Background:
- Accessory liver tissue in the thoracic cavity is an exceptionally rare congenital anomaly.
- Typically, these anomalies are asymptomatic and discovered incidentally, posing diagnostic challenges.
Observation:
- A 26-year-old woman presented with an incidentally detected mass in the left thoracic cavity on chest roentgenogram and computed tomographic scan.
- Surgical exploration via left posterolateral thoracotomy revealed a 10 x 8 x 5 cm mass, separate from the lung, with abdominal vascular supply and an intact diaphragm.
Findings:
- Pathological examination confirmed the resected mass to be normal hepatic tissue, consistent with an accessory liver lobe.
- The vascular supply originating from the abdomen and the intact diaphragm are key anatomical features of this rare presentation.
Implications:
- This case highlights the importance of comprehensive diagnostic imaging in evaluating thoracic masses.
- Understanding the embryological basis and anatomical variations of accessory liver tissue is crucial for surgical planning and patient management.
- Such rare occurrences necessitate detailed case reporting to expand the collective knowledge in thoracic surgery and hepatology.
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