Primary adrenal leiomyosarcoma

Abstract

Primary adrenal leiomyosarcoma is a very rare mesenchymal tumor that arises from smooth muscle cells in the wall of the central adrenal vein or its branches (1). Less than 50 cases have been published in the English literature (2). The tumors are aggressive and often metastasize. This report describes a case of primary adrenal leiomyosarcoma that presented as intermittent left flank pain of 6 months duration in an otherwise healthy 58-year-old Caucasian female. The patient was initially imaged with an abdominal ultrasound, which revealed a left suprarenal mass. A follow-up CT of the abdomen and pelvis confirmed a malignant appearing left adrenal mass. A subsequent PET-CT demonstrated increased metabolic activity within the adrenal mass without evidence of metastasis. Biopsy proven metastasis eventually was detected on surveillance CT studies over the course of 2.5 years. Since this is such a rare malignancy, documenting its imaging findings with multiple modalities is of importance to add to the medical literature and help further characterize its imaging features.