Myelolipoma of the adrenal gland. Surgical removal.

MYELOLIPOMA of the adrenal is a tumor arising in either the cortex or medulla of the adrenal, composed of fat and hematopoietic tissue resembling that found in bone marrow. It is a well-defined tumor mass without a true capsule, although compressed adrenal cortex tissue is usually seen surrounding the tumor giving the appearance of encapsulation. Such fat and hematopoietic tissue tumors were first recognized by Gierke 1 in 1905 and were given the name of myelolipoma by Oberling 2 in 1929. Plaut, 3 in 1958, reported 50 cases from the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology and a similar number from the literature. These were all discovered at autopsy as incidental findings. The tumor usually measured less than 4 cm in diameter and caused no apparent clinical symptoms. Asuncion, 4 in 1965, found 144 cases of myelolipoma in the literature, all discovered at autopsy. Plaut 3 reported from the literature, the