Sternal hemangioma: a rare tumor

Reconstruction of Chest Wall by Cryopreserved Sternum Allograft After Resection of Sternal Hemangioma: A Case Report

A 5-year-old girl was referred to our department for a mass of sternum that was previously biopsied and diagnosed as hemangioma. Chest X-ray and CT scan confirmed a large sternal mass. We resected the sternum completely and reconstructed a large anterior chest wall defect by a cryopreserved sternal allograft. In the follow-up of the patient, there was no instability of the chest wall and acceptable cosmetic results.

Dynamic magnetic resonance imaging features of cavernous hemangioma in the manubrium: A case report

BACKGROUND

Osseous hemangiomas, especially those located in the manubrium, are rare benign tumors. In a review of the literature, only three case reports of sternal hemangioma were found. A precise diagnosis is difficult because of their nonspecific findings on computed tomography (CT)/magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

CASE SUMMARY

An 88-year-old woman was suffering from a progressively enlarging mass in the manubrium. Chest CT images showed an osteolytic and expansile lesion with cortical destruction. Vascular malformation was suspected after CT-guided biopsy. On the dynamic MRI scans, the mass showed a bright signal on the T2-weighted image, peripheral nodular enhancement on the early-phase images and progressive centripetal fill-in on the delayed-phase images. Cavernous hemangioma was suspected preoperatively based on the MRI features and finally confirmed by histopathologic analysis.

CONCLUSION

This uncommon case demonstrates the possible characteristic features of manubrium cavernous hemangioma on dynamic MRI scans; knowledge about these features may prevent patients from developing catastrophic complications, such as rupture or internal hemorrhage, caused by biopsy or surgery.

Hemangioma of the sternum. Ann Thorac Surg. 2008;86:1974-1976. [PMID: 19022024 DOI: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2008.04.109]

Primary tumors of the sternum are rare and most of them are malignant. Benign lesions are typically chondromas, bone cysts, or hemangiomas. Among these tumors, hemangiomas are extremely rare. We report a rare case of hemangioma of the sternum. The patient was successfully treated with complete resection of the tumor and sternum stability was obtained by polypropylene mesh and methylmethacrylate.