Abdominal Leiomyosarcoma

By Lisa Orris, 4th Feb 2012 | Follow this author | RSS Feed | Short URL http://nut.bz/165d82xr/
Posted in Wikinut>Health>General Health>Diseases & Infections

Brief introduction about a very rare cancer by the name of the leiomyosarcoma.

Abdominal Leiomyosarcoma

The leiomyosarcoma is a type of cancer that most notably arises in the smooth muscle tissue of bodily organs. As these smooth muscle tissue cells frenziedly divide, a tumor forms that can become quite sizeable. The organ that is most affected by the leiomyosarcoma is the stomach, but these tumors may evolve in just about any location. This type of sarcoma is very extraordinary making up approximately one percent of all cancer cases. The precise source that causes this form of cancer still remains unspecified, but it is felt that a family history of this condition amplifies the risk for its development. There may be some environmental aspects that play a part as well.

Some particularly early warning signs of this cancer include the feeling that food gets stuck while attempting to swallow, as well as feeling bloated and full very quickly when trying to eat. As the disease progresses other symptoms start to surface to include nausea, weight loss, internal bleeding, and vomiting to name a few. By the time a tumor or mass is undoubtedly present upon clinical examination, this cancer is almost always in the later stages of advancement. In order to make a definitive diagnosis, biopsies will need to be taken and sent for pathology. CT scans (computerized tomography) will need to be utilized throughout the course of the illness to monitor for any decrease in tumor size as a result of attempted chemotherapy treatment as well as to monitor for any further disease recurrence in other parts of the body also known as metastasis. This cancer is noted to most frequently spread to sites such as the lungs, liver, and pancreas.

The best treatment option for this type of sarcoma is surgical resection of the tumor. Surgical resection is often very difficult and tedious due to the size capability of some of these masses. It is not always possible to remove the tumor in its entirety. There are complications that may be encountered with spillage or breaking of the tumor during removal attempts. It is not uncommon for surgeries of this nature to last from approximately 15-18 hours in duration due to the fact that other procedures such as appendectomies or splenectomies may also need to be done as well since the disease is typically already found to have progressed to other locations in the body.
Following surgery and positive biopsy and pathology results, radiation and chemotherapy treatment options may be considered depending on grading and staging of the mass. The grading classifications are either low grade or high grade. Tumors found to be high grade in character are most definitely of a more critical nature. Cancer staging from I-IV are determined by how advanced the disease is found to be. Unfortunately, the survival rate for an abdominal leiomyosarcoma is very grave at this time, but we still remain hopeful to make further gains in the future with regard to its treatment.