Radiological study of 12 high-grade surface osteosarcomas.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of our study was to report the imaging characteristics of 12 high-grade surface osteosarcomas, diagnosed, staged, treated and followed up in a single institution.


METHODS
There were 3 females and 9 males ranging in age from 15 to 34 years (mean 20 years). The radiological documents (plain films in all patients, CT scans in 8 and MR images in 6) were reviewed and compared with the histological findings.


RESULTS
Disease sites were the femur (7), tibia (4) and fibula (1). Tumor size varied from 6 to 17 cm. The cortex appeared normal in two patients, thick in seven and/or thin in five. The tumor showed dense ossification in all except in one case where ossification was slight. Minimal marrow involvement was visible in two cases on CT/MRI. Only one case exhibited a satellite nodule in a previous biopsy tract. Two cases radiologically mimicked periosteal osteosarcoma.


CONCLUSIONS
High-grade surface osteosarcomas are often characterized by the presence of an ossified mass contiguous with and originating from the cortical bone with no or minimal marrow involvement.
Vanel
D
D
Laboratorio di Ricerca Oncologica, Institute Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy. vanel@igr.fr
Picci
P
P
De Paolis
M
M
Mercuri
M
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D005266:Femoral Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D005360:Fibula / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D012516:Osteosarcoma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D013977:Tibia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed