Leiomyosarcoma of the posterior mediastinum extending into the adjacent spinal canal

Leiomyosarcoma of the mediastinum and primary leiomyosarcoma of the spine are exceedingly rare. In most cases, spinal leiomyosarcoma is metastatic. In this report, we describe the case of a 58-year-old man who presented with a large leiomyosarcoma of the posterior mediastinum that extended into the adjacent spinal canal. The tumor was completely resected from the mediastinum, but only subtotally removed from the spinal canal because the spinal mass had tightly invaded the spinal cord. Because the patient's postoperative condition was poor, no adjuvant radiotherapy or chemotherapy was administered. He expired 3 months after the surgery due to relapse; the spinal and mediastinal tumor remained at the preoperative size.