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Review
. 2006 Jun 27:6:169.
doi: 10.1186/1471-2407-6-169.

Recurrence in skeletal muscle from squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix: a case report and review of the literature

Gabriella Ferrandina  1 , Vanda Salutari, Antonia Testa, Gian Franco Zannoni, Marco Petrillo, Giovanni Scambia
Affiliations
Review

Recurrence in skeletal muscle from squamous cell carcinoma of the uterine cervix: a case report and review of the literature

Gabriella Ferrandina et al. BMC Cancer. .

Abstract

Background: The occurrence of skeletal muscle metastases is a very rare event. Only two cases of late skeletal muscle recurrence from cervical cancer have been documented until now.

Case presentation: A 38-year old patient, submitted to radical hysterectomy and pelvic lymphadenectomy for a squamous FIGO stage IB1 cervical carcinoma, presented after 76 months with a palpable, and painless swelling on the left hemithorax. MRI showed a nodule located in the context of the intercostal muscles. Pathology revealed the presence of metastasis of squamous cell carcinoma of similar morphology as the primary. On the basis of FDG-PET findings, which excluded other sites of disease, surgical excision of the lesion was performed. The patient was triaged to chemotherapy plus external radiotherapy.

Conclusion: A case of skeletal muscle recurrence from cervical cancer after a very long interval from primary diagnosis is reported. Muscular pain or weakness, or just a palpable mass in a patient with a history of cancer has always to raise the suspicion of muscle metastasis.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A. Ultrasonography of the left thorax documenting a hypoechogenic nodule in the context of the intercostal muscle, close to the underlying rib. The nodule shows intralesional vessels at Color Doppler examination. B. T1-weighted MRI showing the presence of a moderate gadolinium-contrast enhancement area in the intercostal muscle adjacent to the rib. C. FDG-PET/CT scan documenting two focuses of abnormal FDG uptake in the left hemithorax. D. Recurrence of squamous cell cervical carcinoma in the rib cage muscle. The bands of skeletal muscle are separated and infiltrated by nests of squamous carcinoma cells surrounded by desmoplasic stroma and showing areas of keratinisation. (Hematoxylin & Eosin, magnification 100×).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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