Primary hepatic leiomyosarcoma:Case report and literature review

Primary hepatic leiomyosarcoma are rare tumors with less than 30 cases reported in the English literature.Non specific presentations and often diagnosis delayed until they reach a large size,is the norm with therapy leading to an often dismal prognosis.A 67-year-old man presented complaining of abdominal pain and a palpable abdominal mass since Jan 2010.Abdominal ultrasonography and abdominal computed tomography revealed a large tumor in the left lobe of the liver.Surgical exploration was undertaken and an extended left hepatectomy with extension onto the dorsal part of segment 8 preserving the MHV with partial resection of segment 6 was undertaken.The weight of the resected specimen was 1300 g of the left lobectomy specimen and 8 g of the segment 6 partial resection specimen.The pathology report confirmed the diagnosis of leiomyosarcoma.On immunohistochemistry,the tumor cells were positive for smooth muscle actin stain.The patient is on regular follow up and is currently 9 mo post resection with no evidence of recurrence.We report the case of a resected primary hepatic leiomyosarcoma and emphasize the need for a global database for these rare tumors to promote a better and broader understanding of this less understood subject.