Primary huge gastric leiomyosarcoma with multiple metastases in a 60-year-old female: a case report

Abstract

The incidence of leiomyosarcomas (LMS) has declined drastically. In fact, the introduction of immunohistochemistry (IHC) helped to differentiate LMS from other gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST) by receptor tyrosine kinase (KIT)-mutation detection making gastric LMS a sporadic tumor recently. We report a 60-year-old female who presented with a three-week history of abdominal pain. An abdominal computed tomography scan showed a large exophytic mass (22 ×19 ×15 cm) arising from the greater curvature of the stomach with multiple metastases. A biopsy was taken, and the initial histopathological examination was suggestive of GIST. However, further histopathological examination confirmed a high-grade gastric LMS. The patient refused any surgical intervention. Therefore, the patient had only received chemotherapy. On 9-month follow-up, the patient is still alive without disease progression. In conclusion, gastric LMS is a rare tumor. Due to the possibility of being misdiagnosed with other GIST, extensive pathological evaluation through specialized experts and IHC analysis is recommended.