Female  genital track

CT and MRI of Uterine Sarcomas and Their Mimickers
http://www.ajronline.org/cgi/content/full/181/5/1369
Sung Eun Rha 1 ; Jae Young Byun 1 ; Seung Eun Jung 1 ; Soo Lim Lee 1 ; Song Mee Cho 1 ; Seong Su Hwang 1 ; Hae Giu Lee 1; Sung-Eun Namkoong 2 ; Jae Mun Lee 1

1 Department of Radiology, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, 505, Banpo-Dong, Seocho-Ku, Seoul 137-040, South Korea.
2 Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Kangnam St. Mary’s Hospital, Seoul 137-040, South Korea.
Received February 3, 2003; accepted after revision March 18, 2003.

Uterine sarcomas are rare tumors of mesodermal origin, constituting only 2–6% of uterine malignant tumors [1]. The three most common histologic variants of uterine sarcomas are malignant mixed müllerian tumors, leiomyosarcomas, and endometrial stromal sarcomas. Uterine sarcomas are, in general, the most malignant group of uterine tumors; they differ from endometrial cancers with regard to diagnosis, clinical behavior, pattern of spread, and management [1]. The distinction among the various subgroups of uterine sarcoma and between uterine sarcomas and other uterine tumors cannot be made on clinical grounds. Therefore, imaging studies, particularly CT and MRI, are important for evaluating the pelvic mass at presentation and for aid in staging the tumor. This pictorial essay discusses the clinical and imaging features of each of the subtypes of uterine sarcoma and their mimickers.