Find information on thousands of medical conditions and prescription drugs.

Pseudomyxoma peritonei

Pseudomyxoma peritonei (PMP, sometimes informally known as "jelly belly") is a very rare form of cancer, commonly known as "jelly belly" due to its production of mucus in the abdominal cavity. The tumor is not harmful by itself, but it has no place to go inside the abdominal cavity. more...

Home
Diseases
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P
Arthritis
Arthritis
Bubonic plague
Hypokalemia
Pachydermoperiostosis
Pachygyria
Pacman syndrome
Paget's disease of bone
Paget's disease of the...
Palmoplantar Keratoderma
Pancreas divisum
Pancreatic cancer
Panhypopituitarism
Panic disorder
Panniculitis
Panophobia
Panthophobia
Papilledema
Paraganglioma
Paramyotonia congenita
Paraphilia
Paraplegia
Parapsoriasis
Parasitophobia
Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease
Parkinsonism
Paroxysmal nocturnal...
Patau syndrome
Patent ductus arteriosus
Pathophobia
Patterson...
Pediculosis
Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease
Pelvic inflammatory disease
Pelvic lipomatosis
Pemphigus
Pemphigus
Pemphigus
Pendred syndrome
Periarteritis nodosa
Perinatal infections
Periodontal disease
Peripartum cardiomyopathy
Peripheral neuropathy
Peritonitis
Periventricular leukomalacia
Pernicious anemia
Perniosis
Persistent sexual arousal...
Pertussis
Pes planus
Peutz-Jeghers syndrome
Peyronie disease
Pfeiffer syndrome
Pharmacophobia
Phenylketonuria
Pheochromocytoma
Photosensitive epilepsy
Pica (disorder)
Pickardt syndrome
Pili multigemini
Pilonidal cyst
Pinta
PIRA
Pityriasis lichenoides...
Pityriasis lichenoides et...
Pityriasis rubra pilaris
Placental abruption
Pleural effusion
Pleurisy
Pleuritis
Plummer-Vinson syndrome
Pneumoconiosis
Pneumocystis jiroveci...
Pneumocystosis
Pneumonia, eosinophilic
Pneumothorax
POEMS syndrome
Poland syndrome
Poliomyelitis
Polyarteritis nodosa
Polyarthritis
Polychondritis
Polycystic kidney disease
Polycystic ovarian syndrome
Polycythemia vera
Polydactyly
Polymyalgia rheumatica
Polymyositis
Polyostotic fibrous...
Pompe's disease
Popliteal pterygium syndrome
Porencephaly
Porphyria
Porphyria cutanea tarda
Portal hypertension
Portal vein thrombosis
Post Polio syndrome
Post-traumatic stress...
Postural hypotension
Potophobia
Poxviridae disease
Prader-Willi syndrome
Precocious puberty
Preeclampsia
Premature aging
Premenstrual dysphoric...
Presbycusis
Primary biliary cirrhosis
Primary ciliary dyskinesia
Primary hyperparathyroidism
Primary lateral sclerosis
Primary progressive aphasia
Primary pulmonary...
Primary sclerosing...
Prinzmetal's variant angina
Proconvertin deficiency,...
Proctitis
Progeria
Progressive external...
Progressive multifocal...
Progressive supranuclear...
Prostatitis
Protein S deficiency
Protein-energy malnutrition
Proteus syndrome
Prune belly syndrome
Pseudocholinesterase...
Pseudogout
Pseudohermaphroditism
Pseudohypoparathyroidism
Pseudomyxoma peritonei
Pseudotumor cerebri
Pseudovaginal...
Pseudoxanthoma elasticum
Psittacosis
Psoriasis
Psychogenic polydipsia
Psychophysiologic Disorders
Pterygium
Ptosis
Pubic lice
Puerperal fever
Pulmonary alveolar...
Pulmonary hypertension
Pulmonary sequestration
Pulmonary valve stenosis
Pulmonic stenosis
Pure red cell aplasia
Purpura
Purpura, Schoenlein-Henoch
Purpura, thrombotic...
Pyelonephritis
Pyoderma gangrenosum
Pyomyositis
Pyrexiophobia
Pyrophobia
Pyropoikilocytosis
Pyrosis
Pyruvate kinase deficiency
Uveitis
Q
R
S
T
U
V
W
X
Y
Z
Medicines

If left untreated, it will eventually build up to the point where it compresses vital structures: the colon, the liver, kidneys, etc.

Unlike most cancers, PMP does not spread through the lymphatic system or through the bloodstream.

It is believed that most PMP starts as cancer of the appendix; the Helicobacter pylori bacterium also seems to be implicated.

Diagnosis

Because it is so rare, it is frequently either not diagnosed or misdiagnosed. Usually the only symptom is of the belly getting bigger, which doctors and patients alike can easily assume is from the patient getting fatter.

Frequently, PMP is diagnosed after the patient is operated on or gets a CT scan for some other problem. On a CT scan, the mucous shows up as a light grey area.

The mucous normally has the consistency and appearance of orange gelatin, but can cement to become much harder.

Treatment

Because PMP is very rare, there is variation in the treatment.

As the tumor grows very slowly, sometimes people choose to just watch and wait.

The most common treatments are debulking and cytoreductive surgery. With debulking, the surgeon attempts to remove as much tumor as possible.

With cytoreductive surgery, the surgeon takes out the peritoneum and any organs that appear to have tumor on them. If the organ is important, only part of it might be removed. Since the mucus tends to pool at the bottom of the abdominal cavity, it is common to remove the ovaries, fallopian tubes, uterus, and parts of the large intestine. Depending upon the spread of the tumor, other organs might be removed, including but not limited to the gallbladder, spleen, and all or portions of the small intestine and/or stomach. For organs that can not be removed safely (like the liver), the surgeon strips off the tumor from the surface.

It is very important to remove or kill every last cancer cell because the cancer cells reproduce quickly on scar tissue, and there is lots of scar tissue after surgery.

To kill the last few cells, chemotherapy drugs are put directly into the abdominal cavity. Either the drugs are swished around by hand for an hour or two as the last step in the surgery, or ports are installed to allow circulation and/or drainage of the chemicals for one to five days after surgery.

Cytoreductive surgery usually takes between ten and thirteen hours, and is sometimes referred to by patients as MOAS (Mother Of All Surgeries) or as the Sugarbaker Procedure (after the doctor who pioneered this form of treatment).

Even with the most aggressive heated chemotherapy treatment, it is very common to have the tumor come back, so further surgeries are frequently needed. The patients usually get frequent CT scans for a while in order to spot any regrowth of the tumor.

Read more at Wikipedia.org


[List your site here Free!]


Pseudomyxoma extraperitonei
From American Family Physician, 6/1/89

Pseudomyxoma Extraperitonei

Mucocele of the appendix may occasionally degenerate or rupture, causing widespread dissemination of mucus-producing epithelium throughout the peritoneal cavity. The continued secretion of these epithelial cells may produce mucous ascitespseudomyxoma peritonei. Moran and Morgan report on what may be the first case of extraperitoneal rupture of an appendiceal mucocele, resulting in a large retroperitoneal mass with a chronic cutaneous sinus.

Rupture of an appendiceal mucocele into the retroperitoneal space permits mucussecreting epithelium to gain access to the intermuscular planes. Although the mucussecreting cells may have an atypical appearance, the condition is considered benign. Because of extensive dissemination, elimination of the mucus-producing tumor cells is difficult. However, when these cells are located outside the peritoneal cavity, no vital structures are involved in the adhesive process, and prognosis is generally better than in pseudomyxoma peritonei. (Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine, November 1988, vol. 81, p. 668.)

COPYRIGHT 1989 American Academy of Family Physicians
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group

Return to Pseudomyxoma peritonei
Home Contact Resources Exchange Links ebay