Acute abdomen in an asbestos factory worker.

Primary malignant tumours of the pericardium, pleura and peritoneum are rare. Typically, these tumours are characterized by serosal spread and shallow invasion into parenchymatous organs. Peritoneal mesotheliomas are less common than those of the pleura. We treated a man who had a primary peritoneal mesothelioma with an unusual presentation — an acute abdomen. We report this case and discuss the relevant literature.