Abstract
Active hemorrhage is a life-threatening complication of advanced tumors. It often
signifies the terminal stage of the disease and therefore is usually treated with
palliative care. Transcutaneous arterial embolization (TAE) is a safe, noninvasive
procedure that halts acute tumor-related bleeding thereby providing effective life-saving
treatment for patients with non-operable tumors. Carcinosarcoma is an uncommon tumor
that generally affects the head and neck, respiratory tract, colon, uterus, ovaries,
and fallopian tubes. The authors present an interesting case of a rare manifestation
in an unusual location. A 60-year-old Caucasian male, who presented with abdominal
and groin pain, was found to have a large carcinosarcoma in the retroperitoneal space.
The tumor was complicated with an active bleed. Since he was not a candidate for surgical
intervention, a TAE was performed. Two days later, the patient was discharged to hospice
where he was able to live out the rest of his life.
Key Indexing Terms
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
May 13,
2013
Received:
August 24,
2012
Footnotes
The authors have no financial or other conflicts of interest to disclose.
Identification
Copyright
© 2013 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
