Possible involvement of cyclooxygenase-2 in the recurrence of desmoid fibromatosis: case series and mini-review of the literature

Summary

Desmoid fibromatosis (DF) is a type of fibrous tumor that rarely metastasizes but often recurs locally. Cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) has been shown to be expressed in DF lesions, although its involvement in DF recurrence is unknown. We investigated the association between COX-2 expression and DF recurrence using immunohistochemistry. Cases of DF treated in our hospital between March 2000 and December 2012 were reviewed. We used immunohistochemistry to identify COX-2 expression in resected specimens from these cases. The relationship between recurrence and age, sex, duration of disease, size of tumor, tumor site, spontaneous pain, inflammation, and COX-2 expression was studied. In the ten included cases (mean age, 55.2 y; 5 male and 5 female patients), we found that COX-2 expression was significantly associated with DF recurrence (p=0.01).