Published online Nov 20, 2013. doi: 10.5321/wjs.v2.i4.103
Revised: April 19, 2013
Accepted: June 1, 2013
Published online: November 20, 2013
Processing time: 264 Days and 17.8 Hours
We report the case of a 17-year-old boy with a soft tissue aneurysmal bone cyst (STABC) located in the posterior aspect of the right mandible. Conventional radiography revealed no positive findings. On the computed tomography scan, the lesion appeared to have a non-uniform intralesional density. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed an abnormal soft tissue masses with cystic component in the superficial part of right mandibular body and angle with intact cortex. Following histopathological examination, fibro-histiocytic proliferation, blood-filled spaces and multinucleated giant cells were seen and the lesion was diagnosed as a STABC. The mass together with underlying bone and periosteum on its periphery was surgically resected under general anesthesia. Thirty-six months after surgery the patient was assessed at outpatient clinic and found no sign of recurrence This may be only the first reported case of the mandible in the English literature of this extremely rare benign tumor occurring in soft tissue.
Core tip: A case of soft tissue aneurysmal bone cyst (STABC) of the mandible is presented in a male teenager. STABC is a rare entity with histological and radiological features that are identical to those of aneurysmal bone cyst, except for that STABC is of extra osseous location. The differential diagnosis of STABC in this location, includes giant cell tumor of soft tissue and extra skeletal osteosarcoma making it quite a challenge in the process of diagnosis.