Intracranial dural metastasis from uterine leiomyosarcoma with orbital extension

Intracranial metastases from uterine leiomyosarcoma are very rare and have been found mainly in the brain (17 cases); on the other hand, metastases to the skull, dura and orbit are really exceptional. The authors report the case of a 57-year-old woman who presented with a 6-week history of right proptosis, left hemiparesis, intracranial hypertension and torpor 8 months after surgery for uterine leiomyosarcoma. CT scan showed a very large right frontal tumor with both intracranial and intraorbital extension. At operation the tumor was found to arise from the dura of the right anterior cranial fossa; complete removal of the intracranial tumor mass and partial removal of the intraorbital component were performed. However, early tumor regrowth was observed 45 days after operation and death occurred 2 months later. Pathologic examination showed a high-grade sarcoma with smooth muscle differentiation and high mitotic activity. Immunohistochemical staining revealed positivity for actin and vimentin and negativity for S-100 protein, cytocheratin and desmin. This is the first reported case of uterine leiomyosarcoma metastatic to the dura of the anterior cranial fossa with intracranial and intraorbital extension. An aggressive surgical resection is the best treatment of intracranial metastatic leiomyosarcoma, because of the scarce response to radiotherapy and chemotherapy. However, the outcome is poor, with early recurrence.