2025 Volume 3 Article ID: 2025-001
Retroperitoneal liposarcoma is a rare cancer, and its diagnosis and treatment remain challenging. The patient was a 76-year-old woman who visited our hospital with a chief complaint of left hypogastrium swelling. Contrast CT and MRI suggested a tumor in the retroperitoneum, and the patient was scheduled to undergo surgery. Before surgery, a needle biopsy was performed through the retroperitoneum from the left dorsal region, leading to a definite diagnosis of dedifferentiated liposarcoma. After laparotomy, left nephrectomy, left hemicolectomy, distal pancreatectomy, and splenectomy were performed, in addition to removal of the peritoneal tumor. At nine months after the surgery, a subcutaneous tumor that developed along the needle biopsy route was removed. Based on the results of a histopathological examination, the patient was diagnosed with dedifferentiated liposarcoma, which was thought to have redeveloped due to dissemination in the needle biopsy route. Needle biopsies are useful for the diagnosis of retroperitoneal sarcoma but are associated with a risk of dissemination, although its incidence is low. We herein discuss the indications for needle biopsy and associated risk management in patients with retroperitoneal liposarcoma by examining the present case.