A Fatal and Rare Case of Hydatid Cyst in the Pouch of Douglas

• Main Authors: Ritu Asnani, Sunil Kumar Yeshvanth, Lancelot Lobo, Shipra Sonkusare
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Thieme Medical and Scientific Publishers Pvt. Ltd. 2021-03-01
• Series: Journal of Laboratory Physicians
• Subjects: frozen section; hydatid cyst; ovarian adenocarcinoma; zoonotic
• Online Access: http://www.thieme-connect.de/DOI/DOI?10.1055/s-0041-1726668

Hydatid cyst is a zoonotic infection and a significant public health problem in low- and middle-income countries. A 79-year-old female patient was presented to the gynecology outpatient department with complaints of pain in the abdomen and difficulty in micturition, with a mass palpable per speculum. The ultrasound was suggestive of an ovarian cystadenocarcinoma, whereas computed tomography of the abdomen favored hydatid cyst with adnexal neoplasm as a differential diagnosis. Considering the contradictory findings, a frozen section was sent to confirm the diagnosis, which showed hooklets of Echinococcus granulosus/hydatid cyst under the microscope. This was a rare case of pelvic hydatid cyst mimicking ovarian malignancy and was associated with a less-preferred mode of investigation (frozen section). This article focuses on how a frozen section, despite its limitations and being expensive, can still be considered for accurate patient management.