Myopericytoma of the Thoracic Spine

Abstract

A case of myopericytoma of the thoracic spine is reported. To report a recently described and extremely rare soft tissue neoplasm in the previously unreported location of the thoracic spine. Myopericytoma is a recently described soft tissue neoplasm with perivascular myoid differentiation. All cases have been reported in the subcutaneous and superficial soft tissues of the extremities. This represents the first reported case of this unusual lesion in the spine. A patient with a 3-month history of progressive weakness of the arms and legs was found to have a lytic lesion of T3. The lesion was surgically treated by curettage followed by a course of radiation. Presenting symptoms, imaging studies, histologic findings, and related literature are reviewed in this study. Histologic evaluation of sections of the surgically removed lesion revealed a concentric, periluminal proliferation of cells with prominent positive smooth muscle actin immunoreactivity. These findings are consistent with the diagnosis of a myopericytoma, a lesion not previously reported in the spine. This study shows the presence of a lesion in the thoracic spine only previously described in the soft tissue of the extremities. The diagnosis of myopericytoma should be included, along with hemangiopericytoma, in the differential diagnosis of lytic lesions of the spine.