Leiomyosarcoma of the Duodenum: Report of Case

Abstract

Only three cases of leiomyosarcoma of the duodenum have been reported to date, the first by von Salis (1) in 1920, the second by Andersen and Doob (2) in 1933, and the third by Silverstone (3) in 1934. The following case is the fourth known instance of leiomyosarcoma arising in the duodenum. Report of Case J. S., a white male aged fifty-four, a machinist by occupation, was admitted to the William J. Seymour Hospital on Nov. 11, 1935, and died Dec. 1, 1935. The chief complaints on admission were pain in the abdomen, loss of weight, itching and jaundice. Up to three months previously the patient had felt perfectly well. At that time he noticed a gradual onset of pain in the upper abdomen below the ribs. He could not take food and vomited frequently after meals. The pain was sharp or burning in character, and occasionally radiated to the back or up into the left chest. He had had no previous stomach trouble. He complained, also, of itching all over his body for the past week, and was told that his skin was yellow. Since the onset of his illness he had had dryness of the mouth and skin and increased thirst, but no increased hunger and no frequency of urination. The appetite was poor. Although the patient stated that he had lost 60 pounds in weight in the last six months, he appeared well nourished. The patient had had an appendectomy in 1930 for a ruptured appendix. In 1920 he lost his left thumb in an accident. An injury by a piece of steel in 1920 caused loss of sight in the right eye, which was enucleated. A similar injury to the left eye in 1927 caused total blindness. Alcohol was used in moderation.