Trauma-associated growth of suspected dormant micrometastasis

BACKGROUND: Cancer patients may harbor micrometastases that remain dormant, clinically undetectable during a variable period of time. A traumatic event or surgery may trigger the balance towards tumor growth as a result of associated angiogenesis, cytokine and growth factors release. CASE PRESENTATION: We describe a patient with non-small lung cancer who had a rapid tumor growth and recurrence at a minor trauma site of his skull bone. CONCLUSION: This case is an illustration of the phenomenon of tumor growth after trauma or surgery and its associated cellular mechanisms. This phenomenon deserves further investigation and study.