Nonfunctional Retroperitoneal Paraganglioma Presenting as Acute Upper Gastrointestinal Hemorrhage

Paragangliomas are very rare tumors arising from extraadrenal chromaffin cells. Clinical presentation of benign retroperitoneal nonfunctional paraganglioma is unspecific. Symptoms may occur when tumor attains a remarkable size or when complications arise. This article reports a case of nonfunctional retroperitoneal paraganglioma as a cause of acute upper gastrointestinal hemorrhage which represents the unusual urgent clinical manifestation of these tumors. The presented case emphasizes the necessity to include extraadrenal paraganglioma in the differential diagnosis in all patients with retroperitoneal mass found even in the presence of at first appearance non-related emergency condition like acute upper gastrointestinal bleeding.