Soft-tissue sarcoma mimicking large haematoma: a report of two cases and review of the literature

R Niimi, A Matsumine, K Kusuzaki, A Okamura, T Matsubara, A Uchida, K Fukutome
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Mie University Faculty of Medicine, Mie, Japan

We report on 2 patients with soft-tissue sarcomas mimicking large haematomas. Neither patient had a medical history of trauma or bleeding tendency. In a patient with a large leiomyosarcoma in the buttock, insufficient biopsy material from initial surgeries precluded a correct diagnosis. In the second patient with epithelioid sarcoma of the forearm, fasciotomy was repeatedly performed for compartment syndrome arising from the tumour. It is important to reconfirm prior trauma and investigate the clinical course and images of patients with an unusual history of haematoma in the extremities. The possibility of a malignant tumour should be suspected, and repeated biopsies should be performed if necessary.