Summary
A case of liposarcoma of the mediastinum is reported and a review of the literature
is given. To our knowledge 53 cases have been described in the literature. The most
common symptoms are dyspnea, chest-pain, a cough and loss of weight. There is no relation
between operability, the duration of clinical symptoms and the size of the tumor.
The final diagnosis was made by histological examination in all cases. A clinical
classification of the tumor is not possible, because there are no characteristic clinical
findings. The prognosis in general depends on the histological type of the tumor.
The poorly differentiated liposarcomas are the most malignant. Although recurrence
of the tumor appears in more than 40% of cases, radical surgical resection is the
only method of successful treatment. The significance of the five-year survival rate
is doubtful, because recurrent tumors were reported up to 14 years after the initial
surgical procedure.
Key Words
Mediastinal liposarcoma - Malignant tumor of the mediastinum
