Stewart-Treves Syndrome in Obesity-Associated Chronic Lymphedema: A Case Report

Abstract

Stewart-Treves syndrome (STS) is defined as the development of cutaneous angiosarcoma in the presence of long-standing lymphedema and is a rare disease with only about 400 cases reported in world literature. We report a case of a 63-year-old morbidly obese woman with a long-standing history of lymphedema who developed angiosarcoma of the right lower extremity with metastasis and presented with acute respiratory distress. The patient underwent a thorough laboratory workup with a chest X-ray showing bilateral effusions. The hematology-oncology service was consulted and found the patient to have significant progression of angiosarcoma causing respiratory failure and cardiac instability. A decision to transition to hospice care was made and the patient eventually passed away in the intensive care unit. We present this case to raise awareness of STS in medical literature to understand its clinical manifestations better. Early detection is imperative as angiosarcoma is commonly an aggressive disease.