Giant cell tumors are distinctive neoplasms characterized by a profusion of multinucleate giant cells scattered throughout a stroma of mononuclear cells. Most giant cell tumors are found at the epiphyses of long bones, especially around the knee joint. Flat bone involvement is rare. However, a case of giant cell tumor with secondary aneurysmal bone cyst was encountered at the scapula of a 25-year-old man. Since the occurrence of a giant cell tumor with secondary aneurysmal bone cyst on flat bones (i.e., the scapula) is extremely rare, the above-mentioned case is worthy of reporting.
Adult ; Bone Cysts/*etiology/pathology ; Bone Neoplasms/*complications/pathology ; Giant Cell Tumors/*complications/pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Scapula

OBJECTIVETo study the relation of the sex, age, location and chemotherapy with recurrence of the tumor.

METHODSFrom January 2000 to August 2010, 47 patients with giant cell tumor of tendon sheath in upper extremity were retrospectively analyzed. Statistical analysis of sex, age at presentation, lesion location, chemical inactivation, surgical complications, tumor recurrence and pathological findings were explored. There were 28 females and 19 males, ranging in age from 17 to 78 years, with an average of 38.15 years. All the patients underwent surgical excision. Fourteen patients received intraoperative chemically inactive treatment. All the patients had routine follow-up to observe the wound healing, pathological findings,tumor recurrence, and received necessary imaging examinations.

RESULTSAll the patients were followed up, and the duration ranged from 22 to 129 months, with a mean time of 53.89 months. Four patients who received intraoperative alcohol inactivation appeared wound complications such as wound swelling, discharge of necrotic tissue, delayed wound healing. Fifteen patients had active growth of tumor tissue, 1 patient had low-grade malignant giant cell tumor of tendon sheath. The recurrence rate was significantly higher in the group which preoperative X-ray was found to have bone destruction (P = 0.003); patients receiving chemically inactivation had lower risk of recurrence after surgery than patients not receiving chemically inactivation (P = 0.042).

CONCLUSIONThe recurrence rate of giant cell tumor of tendon sheath in upper limb was closely related to tumor growth site, bone destruction and chemical inactivation. Local excision of giant cell tumor of tendon sheath was the effective treatment. How to identify the patients at high risk of recurrence, how to reduce the recurrence rate and the functional restoration after wide resection are the priorities and difficulties of future researches.

Adult ; Female ; Giant Cell Tumors ; pathology ; surgery ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasm Recurrence, Local ; epidemiology ; Postoperative Complications ; epidemiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Soft Tissue Neoplasms ; pathology ; surgery ; Tendons ; pathology ; Upper Extremity

Any medical diagnosis should take a multimodal approach, especially those involving tumour-like conditions, as entities that mimic neoplasms have overlapping features and may present detrimental outcomes if they are underdiagnosed. These case reports present diagnostic pitfalls resulting from overdependence on a single diagnostic parameter for three musculoskeletal neoplasm mimics: brown tumour (BT) that was mistaken for giant cell tumour (GCT), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus osteomyelitis mistaken for osteosarcoma and a pseudoaneurysm mistaken for a soft tissue sarcoma. Literature reviews revealed five reports of BT simulating GCT, four reports of osteomyelitis mimicking osteosarcoma and five reports of a pseudoaneurysm imitating a soft tissue sarcoma. Our findings highlight the therapeutic dilemmas that arise with musculoskeletal mimics, as well as the importance of thorough investigation to distinguish mimickers from true neoplasms.
Adult ; Aneurysm, False ; diagnosis ; Biopsy ; Bone Diseases ; diagnosis ; Bone Diseases, Metabolic ; diagnosis ; Bone Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; Cell Proliferation ; Diagnosis, Differential ; Diagnostic Errors ; prevention & control ; Female ; Giant Cell Tumors ; diagnosis ; Humans ; Hyperparathyroidism ; complications ; Leukocytosis ; diagnosis ; Male ; Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus ; Middle Aged ; Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; microbiology ; Osteomyelitis ; diagnosis ; microbiology ; Osteosarcoma ; diagnosis ; Sarcoma ; diagnosis ; Soft Tissue Neoplasms ; diagnosis ; Tibia ; pathology