Extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma presenting as an intradural spinal mass: report of a rare clinical presentation with an emphasis on differential diagnostic considerations

Extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma is a rare soft tissue neoplasm that occurs predominantly in the soft tissues of the lower extremities. Herein we present a case of a 29 year old male who presented with bilateral femoral numbness believed to be the result of prior injury to his back. A magnetic resonance imaging revealed a mass in the T4-T5 epidural space compressing the spinal cord. Laminectomy was performed and the lesion removed piecemeal. The pathology specimen consisted of multiple fragments of dura involved by a myxoid neoplasm with a nodular growth pattern. The tumor cells were arranged in anastomosing cords and strands. Individual tumor cells were small, of uniform size and shape, with small hyperchromatic nuclei and scant eosinophilic cytoplasm. Immunohistochemical stains were performed which showed the tumor cells were diffusely positive for vimentin and focally positive for EMA, S-100 protein and cytokeratin, whereas they were negative for CD34 and CD99. Fluorescence<em> in situ</em> hybridization (FISH) studies showed a clonal population of cells with re-arrangement of the <em>EWSR1</em> locus, confirming the histologic impression of extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma. This is the first report of a case of an extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma arising from the dura, confirmed to have rearrangement of the <em>EWSR1</em> gene by FISH. There have only been two other cases of dural based extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma reported prior to our case. We also briefly review the published literature and discuss differential diagnostic considerations for this rare tumor