Intimal aortic sarcoma mimicking ruptured thoracoabdominal type IV aneurysm. A rare case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Primary intimal aortic sarcoma represents a very rare and highly lethal medical entity. Diagnosis is made either by embolic events caused by the tumor or by surrounding tissue symptoms such as pain. Herein we report an extremely rare case of a 51-year-old man previously operated for ascending aortic aneurysm, who presented with clinical and radiological findings suggestive of a ruptured thoracoabdominal type IV aneurysm. The patient underwent radical resection of the aorta and surrounding tissue with placement of a composite 4-branched graft. The diagnosis was made by frozen section and regular histopathologic examination of the specimen and the patient received adjuvant chemotherapy. Nine months after surgery the patient is still alive and has no signs of recurrence. We review the literature and discuss the option of postoperative chemotherapy. © 2011 Dedeilias et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.