What is leiomyosarcoma?

What is leiomyosarcoma?

Leiomyosarcoma, or LMS, is a type of rare cancer that grows in the smooth muscles. The smooth muscles are in the hollow organs of the body, including the intestines, stomach, bladder, and blood vessels. In females, there is also smooth muscle in the uterus.

What is a retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma?

Retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma is a malignant cancer that develops in soft tissue of retroperitoneal cavity and it often grows without pain; such characteristic leads to incidental discovery and mostly as an enormous mass. It accounts for 21% to 60% of soft tissue sarcoma originated from retroperitoneum.

Where is retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma?

The retroperitoneal space – also called the retroperitoneum – is the anatomical space in the abdominal cavity behind the peritoneum. Retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma is a cancerous, smooth muscle tumor in the retroperitoneal space.

How long can you live with retroperitoneal sarcoma?

Median overall survival was 48.7 months for all patients (95% CI 33.7 – 66.3). Median survival in patients who underwent surgery was 62.7 months compared to 12.7 months in those who did not (p<0.001, Figure 1A).

What does leiomyosarcoma feel like?

Signs & Symptoms A leiomyosarcoma, especially in the early stages, may not be associated with any obvious symptoms (asymptomatic). General symptoms associated with cancer may occur including fatigue, fever, weight loss, a general feeling of ill health (malaise), and nausea and vomiting.

How does leiomyosarcoma start?

Leiomyosarcoma most often begins in the abdomen or uterus. It starts as a growth of abnormal cells and often grows quickly to invade and destroy normal body tissue.

Is retroperitoneal sarcoma painful?

With particularly large tumors, the patient may feel short of breath with exertion or have reflux, constipation or leg swelling. Occasionally, retroperitoneal sarcomas cause pain when they press against a nerve.

How can you tell the difference between leiomyosarcoma and leiomyoma?

Leiomyomas are benign , smooth muscle tumors arising from the uterine myometrium, whereas leiomyosarcomas are aggressive, malignant tumors of the myometrium.

What are signs of leiomyosarcoma?

What were your first sarcoma symptoms?

Most often, the first sign is a painless lump. As the lump gets bigger, it might press against nerves or muscles and make you uncomfortable or give you trouble breathing, or both. There are no tests that can find these tumors before they cause symptoms that you notice.

How does a sarcoma feel?

Symptoms of soft tissue sarcomas For example: swelling under the skin may cause a painless lump that cannot easily be moved around and gets bigger over time. swelling in the tummy (abdomen) may cause abdominal pain, a persistent feeling of fullness and constipation.

What are symptoms of leiomyoma?

In women who have symptoms, the most common signs and symptoms of uterine fibroids include:

• Heavy menstrual bleeding.
• Menstrual periods lasting more than a week.
• Pelvic pressure or pain.
• Frequent urination.
• Difficulty emptying the bladder.
• Constipation.
• Backache or leg pains.