Myxofibrosarcoma Vanishes After Biopsy in One of Nine Known Cases

A 59-year-old woman who noticed a rapidly growing lump in her arm a few weeks earlier sought medical help when the tumour measured 2 centimetres wide. Rohit Sharma at Marshfield Clinic Health System in Wisconsin treated the woman and marked the tumour’s location with tattoo ink before performing a biopsy by briefly inserting a thin needle into it.

The biopsy revealed the lump, located in the connective tissue between the woman’s skin and muscle, was a myxofibrosarcoma containing aggressive cancer cells.

The woman returned for surgery two weeks after the biopsy, but clinicians discovered the tumour had completely disappeared. The woman reported that after the biopsy the tumour started to go down within three to four days. To ensure the cancer was gone, the team surgically excised the tissue surrounding where the tumour had been and confirmed there were no cancer cells.

@NewScientist reported that this is one of just nine known cases where a biopsy led to a myxofibrosarcoma disappearing within a few weeks. 107111. ” Sharma added that any type of cancer disappearing after biopsy is highly unusual but has been most commonly reported for cancers that are more easily recognised by the immune system, such as those of the skin.

Toby Lawrence at the Centre for Immunology of Marseille-Luminy in France, who was not involved in the case, stated: “It’s extremely remarkable. ” The team hopes to explore the mechanism by compiling a database of similar cases over the next few years. Sharma and his colleagues believe the biopsy may have caused some cancer cells to die and release inflammatory signals that activated immune cells.