Retroperitoneal Fibrosarcoma: Report of Eight Cases

Abstract

Connective-tissue tumors are unusual in the retroperitoneal space. The finding of eight such neoplasms during 2500 routine autopsies forms the basis of this report. Culver and Baker state that benign retroperitoneal tumors are not common, although over 200 cases appear in the literature; the majority of these are lipomatous in nature. Retroperitoneal fibromata have been reported by Schmid, Cope, Lind, Pritzi, Danheisser, and Ogilvie. Magoun found in the records of the Mayo Clinic, from January 1907 to September 1919, 73 examples of non-metastatic retroperitoneal tumors. Fifty-three patients were operated upon and the growths were shown to be malignant in 29 instances and benign in 18 while in 6 the nature was undetermined. The malignant group showed the following tumors of connective-tissue origin: 4 spindle-cell sarcomas, 2 fibrosarcomas, and a fibroblastoma. In the benign group there was one fibroma. Andrews studied 28 cases of retroperitoneal sarcoma, among which were the following of connective-tissue origin; 4 spindle-cell sarcomas, 4 fibrosarcomas, 2 mixed-cell tumors, 2 fibromyxomas, and a myxo-osteochondrosarcoma. Metastases occurred in 33 per cent of his cases: commonly to the liver, lungs, and lymph nodes; uncommonly to the spleen, kidney, skin, omentum, muscle, pleura, heart, bone, dura, spinal cord, and adrenals. Andrews noted that trauma was apparently not of etiologic importance. In our series only one patient gave a history of trauma.