2020 Volume 56 Issue 6 Pages 906-913
Purpose: The aim of this study was to review the clinical courses of patients with lipoblastoma and to determine the appropriate treatment.
Methods: A retrospective study was carried out on 51 patients with lipoblastoma removal at our institute between April 1981 and March 2019. The following data were studied: lesions, symptoms, surgical findings (whether there were capsulation, adhesion, invasion, and partial or complete removal), recurrence, postoperative complications, and histopathological images of recurrent tumor.
Results: Lipoblastoma occurs commonly in the extremities and trunk, and most of them grow without pain. In four patients, it occurred in the body, and three of them presented symptoms such as coughing and vomiting caused by compression of the surrounding organs. Two patients had recurrence. Both had an unclear capsule or showed adherence to nearby tissue, but were completely resected at the time of the first surgery. In the patients subjected to partial removal, no recurrence or growth was observed, and in the patients in whom the surrounding tissue was removed, some had functional impairment due to scarring.
Conclusions: Lipoblastomas have risks of recurrence. However, they are benign tumors and may disappear or differentiate. Therefore, we should not stick to complete resection, especially in cases wherein the tumors adhere to or invade the surrounding tissue. Moreover, this tumor may recur long after surgery with or without a total resection, so careful follow-up is required for at least five years after surgery.
