Cholesteatoma of the Renal Pelvis

Abstract

A case of cholesteatoma in the renal pelvis of a 60-year-old woman is described. The patient had a typical history with urinary tract infections, keratin sheets in her urine and a filling defect in the renai pelvis as seen in an i.v. urogram. At selective renal angiography, no tumour vessels were seen. Although nephrectomy was performed in the present case, the possibility of conservative surgery is discussed, especially as the risk of cholesteatoma developing into carcinoma seems small. The usefulness of selective renal angiography in differential diagnosis and the importance of follow-up with urograms and especially urine cytology are stressed.