Rhabdomyosarcoma of nose and paranasal sinuses--a therapeutic challenge

Rhabdomyosarcoma is a highly malignant tumour of striated muscle and it is the most common soft tissue sarcoma in the paediatric age group. It is very uncommon in the nose and paranasal sinuses. Pinkish nasal mass and recurrent epistaxis are the most common presenting symptoms. Histologically embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma is the most common variant. The present series deals with seven such cases of different histopathological types including the embryonal, botryoid, and alveolar varieties in the paediatric age group. Multimodal treatment including limited surgery followed by radiotherapy and chemotherapy resulted in survival ranging from 3 days to more than 3 years, which was also influenced by the severity of the disease at presentation and its aggressiveness.