skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Functional asplenia and portal hypertension in a patient with primary splenic hemangiosarcoma

Journal Article · · Clinical Nuclear Medicine; (USA)

A 60-year-old man with primary splenic hemangiosarcoma (PSH) presented with weakness, weight loss, abdominal pain, and anemia. Physical examination revealed hepatomegaly, ascites, and firm, huge splenomegaly. Ultrasonography showed many nodular structures characterized by hypoechogenic and hyperechogenic areas. The patient also had portal hypertension, which was confirmed by physical findings and by measurement of portal vein pressure during operation. A liver-spleen scan using Tc-99m sulfur colloid and Tc-99m labeled heat denatured erythrocytes failed to demonstrate any splenic uptake, a reliable feature of functional asplenia. Although on a total body scan with Ga-67 citrate there was no splenic uptake, there was gallium uptake in the liver, where the presence of the metastatic lesion was histopathologically verified and confirmed by operation. There was also uptake in the middle zones of the lungs. Ga-67 citrate imaging appears to be helpful in the diagnosis of metastasis of PSH, and PSH can rarely cause portal hypertension.

OSTI ID:
6749394
Journal Information:
Clinical Nuclear Medicine; (USA), Vol. 15:5; ISSN 0363-9762
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English