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Benign Metastasizing Leiomyoma: Is “Wait and Watch” Strategy Feasible?

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Abstract

Benign metastasizing leiomyoma (BML) is a rare disease that affects women with a history of uterine leiomyoma. The aim of this study is to investigate the clinical characteristics and outcome patterns. We collected 385 cases from previous reports indexed in PubMed and Google Scholar and made a thorough review. All relevant clinical parameters were carefully reviewed, including age at diagnosis, clinical presentations, course of disease, medical history, imaging, molecular tests, treatment, and outcomes. Univariate survival analysis was performed to investigate the effects of treatment strategies on outcomes. The mean age at diagnosis was 46.2 years. The most common site for the metastasis was lung, and followed by abdomen/pelvis/retroperitoneum, bone, lymph nodes, and heart. The medical histories and molecular alterations were non-specific, and the pathogenesis was still unclear. Due to its unresectable nature, hormone deprivation treatment, including oophorectomy and hormone drugs, is the most effective strategy to reduce or delay tumor progression. The present study may provide a useful consultation for diagnosing and managing BMLs.

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Acknowledgements

We thank the support from Taishan Scholar Program (No. tsqn202211376).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pathology, The Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, No. 1677 Wutaishan Road, Shandong, 266555, Qingdao, China

    Yixuan Liu, Dong Li, Xueqing Li & Jigang Wang

  2. Department of Pathology, School of Basic Medicine, Qingdao University, No. 308 Ningxia Road, Shandong, 266071, Qingdao, China

    Jingnan Wang

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Correspondence to Jigang Wang.

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Because this was a review paper that gathered and reviewed previous studies on clinical characteristics and therapies of benign metastasizing leiomyoma, no permission from research ethical boards was required to achieve the study’s objectives.

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Liu, Y., Li, D., Li, X. et al. Benign Metastasizing Leiomyoma: Is “Wait and Watch” Strategy Feasible?. Reprod. Sci. 30, 3568–3577 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s43032-023-01314-9

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