Pearls and Pitfalls in the Imaging of Soft-Tissue Masses in Children

Abstract

There is a broad spectrum of soft-tissue masses in children that can be challenging to diagnose clinically and on imaging. This article reviews the typical clinical and imaging findings of the most common and relevant benign, intermediate and malignant pediatric soft-tissue tumors in the following categories of the 2013 World Health Organization (WHO) classification: adipocytic tumors (lipoma, lipoblastoma, and liposarcoma), fibroblastic/myofibroblastic tumors (nodular fasciitis, myositis ossificans, fibrous hamartoma of infancy, fibromatosis colli, desmoid-type fibromatosis, lipofibromatosis, and infantile fibrosarcoma), pericytic tumors (myofibroma/myofibromatosis), skeletal muscle tumor (rhabdomyosarcoma), nerve sheath tumors (neurofibroma, malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor), and uncertain differentiation (synovial sarcoma). In general, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging are used as first- and second-line imaging modalities, with limited roles for plain radiographs, computed tomography, and fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography. Many of these tumors have nonspecific imaging findings although there are some key imaging clues that in conjunction with the clinical information allow a specific diagnosis or a narrow differential diagnosis. However, in many instances, histology is required for final diagnosis.