title: Pigmented cardiac paraganglioma.
abstract: A pigmented left atrial paraganglioma was found at autopsy in a 40-year-old black man who died unexpectedly. The cause of death was ascribed to coronary artery disease. The atrial mass was sharply demarcated and polypoid, measured 4 cm in greatest dimension, and had a cut surface that revealed dark red-brown soft tumor tissue. Histopathologically, the neoplasm exhibited a classic organoid clustering of cells (zellballen) with a prominent capillary network. The chief cells contained a brown-black pigment with histochemical characteristics of melanin. We report a case of pigmented cardiac paraganglioma because of its rarity. To our knowledge, no mention has been made of the presence of pigment in previously reported cases of cardiac paragangliomas.
authors: Department of Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
authors: I
authors: I
authors: Mikolaenko
authors: C A
authors: CA
authors: Galliani
authors: G G
authors: GG
authors: Davis
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D006325:Heart Atria; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000737:chemistry / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008543:Melanins / Q000032:analysis*; D010235:Paraganglioma / Q000737:chemistry / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D010858:Pigmentation
chemical_list: D008543:Melanins