Hereditary persistence of alpha-fetoprotein mimicking testicular cancer in a patient with acute epididymitis

Abstract

Only a few cases of hereditary persistence of α-fetoprotein (HPAFP) have been published. This report presents an association between HPAFP and inflammatory testis disease, to the authors' knowledge, for the first time. HPAFP was diagnosed in a 41-year-old patient with acute epididymitis after exclusion of malignancies and benign diseases.

Key Words::

• epididymitis
• α-fetoprotein
• hereditary persistence of α-fetoprotein
• testicular cancer
• tumour marker

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.