Spontaneous transient size reduction of a solitary pulmonary metastasis from a leiomyosarcoma
Nao Ito1, Shuhei Iizuka2, Kanji Sasaki3
1Department of General Thoracic Surgery, Seirei Hamamatsu General Hospital, 2-12-12 Sumiyoshi, Naka-ku, Hamamatsu, Shizuoka, 430-8558, Japan. nnnnnmnna@gmail.com.
Background:
A solitary pulmonary nodule (SPN) poses a diagnostic challenge, which includes both a benign and malignant etiology. A size enlargement often indicates malignancy. We herein describe a case of a solitary pulmonary metastasis from a leiomyosarcoma that regressed transiently during follow-up.
Case Presentation:
A 47-year-old woman presented with an SPN detected by follow-up computed tomography 7 years after surgery for a left forearm high-grade leiomyosarcoma. The nodule regressed spontaneously after an additional 6 months, and therefore, an inflammatory change was the most likely diagnosis at that time. However, the nodule enlarged again over the next 5 years. The growth rate led us to suspect a malignancy. A trans-bronchial biopsy was undiagnostic and a video-assisted thoracic surgery was planned. She underwent a wedge resection of the right lung, and a histopathological examination found it was a metastatic leiomyosarcoma.
Conclusions:
A pulmonary metastasis from a leiomyosarcoma could emerge as an SPN and reveal a subsequent transient size reduction. An SPN in patients even with a remote history of a soft tissue tumor should raise the possibility of metastasis, and periodic follow-up is essential even after the size reduction.
