Effective chemotherapy for abdominal desmoid tumor in a patient with Gardner's syndrome : report of a case

Desmoid tumors are rare, but not in patients with Gardner's syndrome. Although standard treatment is wide surgical excision, we prescribed chemotherapy for a 30-year-old woman with intra-abdominal desmoids, a complication after subtotal colectomy for the treatment of familial polyposis coli. Exploratory laparotomy revealed that the desmoids were not resectable. Chemotherapy with combinations of vincristine, azathioprine, cyclophosphamide, and prednisone was prescribed for over 3 months, and a partial regression of the tumors occurred. Two years after the initiation of the chemotherapy, complete regression of tumors was achieved with cyclophosphamide and prednisone. Surgical excision, irradiation, and chemotherapy treatments are discussed.