Symptomatic Pleural Lipoma: A Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Pleural lipomas are extremely rare benign, slow-growing tumours of mesenchymal parietal pleura origin with the capacity to extend into sub pleural, pleural or extra pleural spaces. They present with a myriad of mild to severe compressiverelated symptoms. Diagnosis can be made via CT, but histopathological intervention is required if the mass exhibits fibrous stroma or dystrophic ring-type calcifications to differentiate between similarly presenting fat-containing intrathoracic masses diagnostically. Watchful waiting and clinical and radiological follow-up are appropriate for those with small and asymptomatic lesions, the elderly, and populations unsuitable for surgical resection. However, surgical resection via thoracotomy has good outcomes and should be considered for diagnostic and therapeutic benefit to those with symptomatic pleural lipoma. Due to the rare occurrence of pleural lipoma, they have only been reported sporadically in the literature. As a result, it is important to report every identified case of pleural lipomas to improve diagnostic accuracy and patient health outcomes. Therefore, we report a case of a pleural lipoma on a chest radiograph (CXR) in a 28-year-old female presenting with localised right chest discomfort.