[Soft-tissue angiosarcoma with pulmonary metastases: case report and literature review]

Zhonghua Jie He He Hu Xi Za Zhi. 2016 Dec 12;39(12):948-952. doi: 10.3760/cma.j.issn.1001-0939.2016.12.009.
[Article in Chinese]

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the differential diagnosis between pulmonary metastases from soft-tissue angiosarcoma and primary pulmonary angiosarcoma. Methods: A case of soft-tissue angiosarcoma with pulmonary metastases was reported and related literatures were reviewed. Results: A 39 year-old man complaining of hemoptysis, cough, and sputum for 10 months was admitted to our hospital in September 2013. He was initially diagnosed as having primary pulmonary angiosarcoma after wedge-resection biopsy of the lung. After 22 months since onset, he felt discomfort in his leg, which led to the confirmative diagnosis of soft-tissue angiosarcoma of the leg with multiple pulmonary metastases by a full-body PET/CT scan and core needle biopsy of the leg. Twenty-three articles concerning primary pulmonary angiosarcoma with complete records of history, treatment and follow-up of patients were included in the literature review. A total of 26 patients were reported in these articles, including 18 males, 8 females, age 19-85 years, average (52±18) years. Primary pulmonary angiosarcoma was mainly manifested as single or multiple pulmonary nodules or masses, with or without ground glass opacity. In our case, chest CT showed multiple thin-wall cysts and ground glass opacities, and recurrent spontaneous pneumothorax, which had never been reported in literatures on primary pulmonary angiosarcoma. Conclusions: Pulmonary metastases from soft-tissue angiosarcoma differed from primary pulmonary lesions in terms of chest imaging, with the former usually showing thin-wall cysts and pneumothorax. A full-body PET-CT was essential for differential diagnosis between primary and metastatic pulmonary angiosarcoma.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Biopsy
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Hemangiosarcoma / diagnostic imaging
  • Hemangiosarcoma / pathology*
  • Hemangiosarcoma / secondary
  • Hemoptysis / etiology*
  • Hemothorax / etiology
  • Humans
  • Lung / pathology
  • Lung Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging*
  • Lung Neoplasms / secondary
  • Lung Neoplasms / surgery
  • Male
  • Pneumothorax
  • Positron Emission Tomography Computed Tomography
  • Soft Tissue Neoplasms / diagnostic imaging
  • Soft Tissue Neoplasms / pathology*
  • Soft Tissue Neoplasms / secondary
  • Tomography, X-Ray Computed / methods*