Musculoskeletal Tumors in Extremities Diagnosed During the Gestational Period: Case Series and Literature Review

Abstract

Given the low incidence of musculoskeletal tumors during pregnancy, publications on the subject are scarce and treatment guidelines nonexistent. We present five cases of musculoskeletal tumors in pregnant women, three with metastasizing malignant neoplasms and two with aggressive giant cell tumors. The three patients diagnosed during their gestational period were operated before the end of pregnancy, adapting surgical techniques to minimize risk to mother and fetus. Adjuvant therapies were postponed until the end of gestation. All newborns were delivered at term vaginally, except for one where a cesarean section was required. After a mean follow-up of 69.96 months (±56.38), all patients were free of disease, except for the one diagnosed with an extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma who died at 4 years from diagnosis. Surgery plays a key role in the treatment of musculoskeletal tumors diagnosed during pregnancy. These patients must be treated by multidisciplinary teams at sarcoma reference hospitals, involving the obstetrics team in the decision-making process, and adapting each step of the diagnosis and treatment to the gestational period. Key words: pregnancy, musculoskeletal tumors, sarcoma, cancer, oncological surgery.