Case report highlights the diagnostic challenge of hemangioendothelioma in soft tissue masses, suggesting immunohistochemistry as a key tool.
Hemangioendothelioma is an intermediate-grade vascular tumor, and its occurrence in the cheek is exceedingly rare. This neoplasm often presents a diagnostic challenge due to its nonspecific clinical features and resemblance to other vascular or neoplastic lesions of the maxillofacial region. We report the case of a 32-year-old female presenting with a slowly progressive, firm, and painless mass of the left cheek. Computed tomography and MRI revealed a well-circumscribed lesion with no evidence of bone invasion. An initial biopsy showed nonspecific fibroinflammatory tissue. Due to the persistence of the mass, surgical excision was performed via a paralateronasal approach. Histopathological examination of the resected specimen was consistent with an inflammatory myofibroblastic tumor. However, immunohistochemical analysis revealed a profile compatible with hemangioendothelioma. This case highlights the importance of considering hemangioendothelioma in the differential diagnosis of facial soft tissue masses, and underscores the value of immunohistochemistry in establishing an accurate diagnosis.
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Sara et al. (2025) studied this question.
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