Conjunctival leiomyosarcoma: A case report and review of literature

Primary Leiomyosarcoma of the Orbit and Conjunctiva: A Report of Four Cases With a Review of the Literature

Leiomyosarcomas (LMS) are common soft tissue tumors in the body. Primary orbital and conjunctival LMS are, however, rare. Herein, we describe the diverse clinical presentations, histopathological features, and management outcomes of three cases of primary LMS of the conjunctiva and one case of primary orbital LMS. The first patient was a 40-year-old female with primary orbital LMS who developed recurrence following wide local excision. The remaining three cases were primary conjunctival LMS. All four patients underwent orbital exenteration and were disease-free at a mean follow-up period of 18.64 months. LMS is known for local recurrences and metastasis. Complete surgical excision and prompt adjuvant radiotherapy can improve the prognosis.

Conjunctival leiomyosarcoma: A clinico-pathological study with in deep molecular characterization

BACKGROUND

Primary and metastatic leiomyosarcomas (LMS) involving the orbital region are well known to occur however, the conjunctiva represents an extremely rare site of occurrence.

METHODS

A 97-year-old male was referred to the Ocular Oncology Unit due to a rapidly growing painful mass (16×12×20 mm) in the nasal conjunctiva of his left eye. Wide excision followed by radiotherapy was performed.

RESULTS

Based on the microscopic features (hypercellular neoplasm composed of spindle cells with cigar shaped and blunt ended nuclei with brightly eosinophilic fibrillary cytoplasm) and immunohistochemical findings (positive staining for Vimentin, Desmin, Caldesmon, and SMA and negative staining for AE1/AE3, EMA, CD117, S100, MelanA, SOX10, HMB45, TLE1, CD99, EMA and AE1 / AE3) the final diagnosis of grade 2 leyomiosarcoma was rendered. Moreover, 'in deep' DNA sequencing (>500 genes analysis) revealed a neoplasm with high TMB: 64 muts/Mb and numerous VUS and several pathogenic/oncogenic molecular alterations, including CNV loss or gain in > 10 genes. At the last follow-up visit, residual disease was observed in the superior fornix, at the nasal limbus and the cornea. At the time of writing, after a follow-up of 2 month the patients is still alive without evidence of metastatic disease.

CONCLUSION

An uncommon molecular finding observed in our case was the presence of TSC1 gene mutation usually associated with soft tissue and gynecological PEComas. Our finding may harbor important therapeutic implications since the inactivation of the tumor suppressor genes TSC1 and TSC2 lead to upregulation of mTOR signaling, providing the rationale for target therapy with mTOR inhibitors. Additional studies on larger series are needed to validate our findings.

Conjunctival leiomyosarcoma

Purpose

Leiomyosarcoma (LMS) is a mesenchymal neoplasm with smooth muscle differentiation, being considered one of the most common soft tissue sarcomas. However, it rarely affects the eye, and when it does, it is usually located in the orbit, being extremely rare in the conjunctiva.

Observations

We report a case of a 45 years old male patient, with a recurrent rapid growing conjunctival mass on the temporal limbus of his left eye, which was excised, and the anatomopathological report was suggestive of a grade 1 leiomyosarcoma. Since the lesion was recurrent, we decided to perform an extended enucleation for treating this condition. Nevertheless, the patient is being followed up to 30 months, with systemic metastasis screening, showing no other lesions or recurrences.

Conclusions and importance

Conjunctival leiomyosarcoma is an extremely rare ocular tumor, which can be clinically indistinguishable from other conditions such as squamous cell carcinoma, so, biopsy is essential. Albeit there is no standard treatment, complete surgical removal with safety margins is mandatory.

Adult Primary Capillary Hemangioma of the Sclera: A Previously Undescribed Entity With a Review of Epibulbar Vascular Lesions

PURPOSE

The objective of this article is to document a unique case of a primary hemangioma and review epibulbar vascular tumors of the conjunctiva and episclera.

METHODS

A case report with detailed histopathologic, histochemical, and immunohistochemical studies coupled with a comprehensive review of the relevant literature with a tabulation of previously reported epibulbar vascular lesions was performed.

RESULTS

A vascular tumor developed in a 46-year-old woman over 2-3 months that histopathologically was located in the superficial third of the normally avascular sclera and was composed of capillary caliber vessels. CD31 and CD34 positivity established the vascular nature of the lesion. Despite its adult onset, the tumor was also glut-1 positive, a vascular characteristic of childhood capillary hemangiomas that will ultimately involute. Smooth muscle actin was positive in the endothelial cells and associated pericytes. An ectatic muscular vessel identified in the midst of the lesion was interpreted as an anomalous intrascleral branch of an epibulbar anterior ciliary artery, where it perforated the sclera in the vicinity of the insertion of an extraocular rectus muscle. It was deduced to be the source of the capillary proliferation. A literature review failed to identify any previously reported epibulbar vascular tumor that originated primarily in the sclera or secondarily infiltrated this ocular tunic.

CONCLUSION

An adult primary capillary intrascleral neoplasm is described as the rarest of all epibulbar vascular tumors and in keeping with the exceptional status of the ocular endothelium was glut-1 positive. This lesion must be distinguished from an array of other common and esoteric epibulbar vascular conditions.

Conjunctival Leiomyosarcoma, a Rare Neoplasm Always Originating at the Limbus? Report of a New Case and Review of 11 Published Cases

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

To describe the differential diagnosis and management of a rare conjunctival malignancy.

PROCEDURES

A 79-year-old man presented with a conjunctival mass at the limbus. Excisional biopsy revealed a malignant mesenchymal tumor with myogenic differentiation. Six months later, three suspect lesions developed at the border of the previous excision. Pathological diagnosis pointed to a leiomyosarcoma. Adjuvant radiotherapy with strontium-90 brachytherapy was applied. After 3 years, there was neither recurrence nor distant metastases. A literature review revealed 11 cases of conjunctival leiomyosarcoma.

RESULTS

All 12 cases seemed to originate at the limbal conjunctiva. Scleral invasion was found only in one patient with multiple previous resections. Corneal invasion was reported in two patients. Four patients had a globe-sparing resection. In two of them, margins were not tumor free and additional brachytherapy gave a tumor-free follow-up of 1 and 3 years. Four cases underwent an exenteration.

CONCLUSION AND MESSAGE

Primary conjunctival leiomyosarcoma is a rare tumor with a favorable prognosis due to early detection and consequently limited size. Diagnosis involves histopathological investigation including immunohistochemistry. If possible, complete resection has the best prognosis. Adjunctive radiotherapy can be effective when the margins are not free and should be considered.