Adrenal failure caused by a retroperitoneal malignant mesothelioma

Abstract

A 62-year-old man presented with clinical signs of acute abdominal pain and adrenal insufficiency. Computerized tomographic scans revealed bilateral adrenal tumors and the left adrenal tumor was surgically resected. The patient was found to have retroperitoneal mesothelioma presenting as bilateral metastatic adrenal tumors, which were well controlled by systemic chemotherapy with CDDP and 5-FU. This case appears to be the first reported case in the literature of adrenal failure due to bilateral adrenal infiltration caused by retroperitoneal malignant mesothelioma. © 2009 The Japanese Society of Internal Medicine.