Challenging differential diagnosis of an extra‐adrenal paraganglioma; the role of fine needle aspiration cytology

Abstract

Paragangliomas are rare neoplasms that arise from neural crest cells of the autonomous system. Herein, we present a case of a 37-year-old patient with a history of retroperitoneal paraganglioma and tuberculous infection presenting with a paraganglioma of the neck that was initially misdiagnosed as metastatic tumor originating from the lungs. Cytological features from fine needle aspiration and immunocytochemistry pointed to the right diagnosis. However, distinguishing between primary and metastatic site of a paraganglioma can be very challenging due to the overlapping features of these entities. Furthermore, this case underlines the value of a detailed medical history in the era of modern diagnostic modalities. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2017;45:565-568. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.