Soft Tissue Sarcoma Resection Leads to Perforated Colon, Sepsis and Death

Case Overview

This case involves a male who underwent a procedure to remove a soft tissue sarcoma from the retroperitoneal region. The procedure was noted to be a success and was conducted without incident. Approximately twenty-four to forty-eight hours after the surgery, however, the patient started to develop signs and symptoms consistent with sepsis. A second procedure revealed that there were two puncture holes that perforated the colon and a delay to identify and repair these injuries allowed the patient to deteriorate rapidly. The patient was in the intensive care unit but died one month later after fighting the severe infection and its effects on the other body organs.

Questions to the Surgical Oncology expert and their responses

Was this procedure conducted within the standard of care?

Surgical resection with clear margins is the treatment of choice for primary liposarcomas.

Was this procedure conducted within the standard of care?

Although gastrointestinal liposarcomas have been previously reported, this is the first case that I’ve heard where a primary liposarcoma is associated with a bowel perforation. This would lead me to believe that the bowel perforation was attributed to surgeon error and not an invasion of the tumor into the surrounding intestinal tissue.

About the expert

This expert is board certified in Surgery with additional Fellowship training in Surgical Oncology. He trained at the University of Chicago for residency and at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida for his Oncology fellowship. He is currently the Clinical Professor in the Department of Surgery at a Major University Medical Center in New York. Furthermore, he is on two advisory committees in his university and is a member of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons.