title: Growth of a leiomyosarcoma of the inferior vena cava.
abstract: Until recently, leiomyosarcoma of the inferior vena cava was rarely diagnosed preoperatively. The authors describe a patient who was treated for 12 months on the basis of a presumptive diagnosis of thrombosis of the inferior vena cava. Abdominal ultrasonography and computed tomography demonstrated interval growth, and venous biopsy revealed a malignant spindle-cell neoplasm. Surgical excision confirmed the presence of a leiomyosarcoma, which had grown slowly for at least several months before entering a phase of accelerated growth.
authors.affiliation: Diagnostic Imaging Department, Queen Elizabeth II Hospital, Grande Prairie, Alta.
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Coughlin
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Andrews
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007890:Leiomyosarcoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014463:Ultrasonography; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D014682:Vena Cava, Inferior