Giant adrenal germ cell tumour in a 59-year-old woman

Adrenal germ cell tumour is very rare. We report a case of a 59-year-old woman who presented with right flank discomfort. The laboratory examinations were normal and the chest computed tomography (CT) showed right pleural effusion. The abdominal CT scan revealed a large mass on the right adrenal gland. The patient underwent an adrenalectomy. Histopathologic examination and immunohistochemical findings were consistent with mixed germ cell tumour. Three months later following the operation, the patient was admitted to our hospital again with chest tightness and shortness of breath. The chest CT showed right pleural effusion recurrence and enlargement of mediastinal lymph nodes and right hilar lymph nodes. The patient had right supraclavicular lymphadenectasis on physical examination. Fine needle aspiration cytology from the supraclavicular lymph nodes showed groups of malignant tumour cells. The patient died within 6 months postoperatively. In this case, the lymph node pathway played an important role in the metastatic procedure.