Case notes
A 60-year-old postmenopausal woman, para 2, had been experiencing a heavy sensation in her lower abdomen for the previous 6 months. Her medical history included vaginal hysterectomy, performed 20 years earlier for vaginal prolapse. An examination indicated the presence of a cystic, smooth, mobile mass in the right adnexa. Ultrasound and contrast-enhanced computerized tomography showed a heterogeneously enhancing tumor of the right ovary ( Figure 1 ). Tests for the tumor markers carcinoembryonic antigen and cancer antigen 125 were negative.
Conclusions
Exploratory laparotomy revealed an encapsulated mass adhering to the patient’s gut loops and bladder. The mass was dissected and removed en bloc. No vascular pedicle attachment was identified with the mass. Both ovaries were atrophic and buried in adhesions.
After the specimen was cut open, a diagnosis of gossypiboma was made ( Figure 2 ). On histopathology, the mass was identified as a cyst composed of foreign-body material surrounded by a thick fibrous wall. Evidence of a giant cell reaction and necrosis was present. The patient’s postoperative course was uneventful.
