A Case of Scalp Angiosarcoma

ABSTRACT

Angiosarcoma is very rare but highly malignant soft tissue tumor derived from the vascular endothelium. This tumor is most commonly found in the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Angiosarcoma is known to cause early and widespread metastasis leading to a very poor prognosis of less than 24 months. We report a case of angiosarcoma developed in the temporoparietal scalp of a 84-year-old man. The patient was referred for us consultation after failed systemic antibiotic treatment, incision drainage treatment for "cellulitis" by the general physician. We performed excision and biopsy. The histologic finding of the lesion showed that irregular, complex vascular channels in dermis. The tumor cells were positive for Factor VIII-related antigen. The lesion was confirmed as cutaneous angiosarcoma. We recommended a radical surgery and reconstruction followed by adjuvant radiation, but the patient refused. The patient was expired 2 months thereafter because of a massive hemorrhagic pleural effusion by suspicious distant metastasis. Authors reported important aspects of clinical findings, histologic features and therapeutic options of the scalp angiosarcoma.