Rare presentation of actinomycosis as an abdominal mass - Report of a case

PURPOSE: The purpose of this article was to report an unusual presentation of abdominal actinomycosis masquerading as a tumor. METHODS: The patient wa s a 54-year-old male who presented with vague abdominal discomfort and a pa lpable left lower quadrant mass defined on CT scan. Multiple intraoperative core biopsies were nondiagnostic, and he underwent en bloc resection of th e mass and adjacent organs for a presumed tumor. RESULTS: Examination of ti ssue from deep within the excised specimen revealed sulfur granules diagnos tic for actinomycosis. CONCLUSION: Abdominal actinomycosis is an extremely rare infection that can mimic multiple disease processes and requires accur ate diagnosis for successful therapy. This novel presentation and a review of the literature are reported.