Atypical perigraft seroma masquerading as a forearm tumor in a dialysis patient

An extremely rare manifestation of perigraft seroma (PGS), in which a dense, semisolid jelly-like mass had formed around the shunt instead of the standard fluid-like form of the usual seroma, leading to misdiagnosis with other entities, such as tumors around the synthetic arterio-venous shunt (AVS) was presented.

A 64-year-old male with multiple myeloma post autologous bone marrow transplant with a renal impairment, presented with a rare form of PGS, which was noticed 2 months after placing a synthetic AVS vascular graft. The mass increased in size, and multiple attempts for excision failed due to recurrence, which led to tumor misdiagnosis. The mass reoccurrence stopped completely only after the radical shunt removal.

This case report revealed a rare form of PGS, in which the seroma was represented as a firm, semisolid jelly-like mass rather than the typical fluid type transudate seroma. Despite its rarity, it was associated with a high recurrence rate because unlike the standard perishunt seroma, this semisolid jelly-like material could neither be aspirated, nor could it be resected en-bloc, leading to shunting dysfunction. Its management included advanced imaging and a high probability of shunt removal or replacement.