liposarcoma

A malignant neoplasm of adults that occurs especially in the retroperitoneal tissues and the thigh, usually deep in the intermuscular or periarticular planes; histologically, l. is a large tumor that may be composed of well-differentiated fat cells or may be dedifferentiated, either myxoid, round-celled, or pleomorphic, usually in association with a rich network of capillaries; recurrences are common, and dedifferentiated l. metastasizes to the lungs or serosal surfaces. [lipo- + sarx, flesh, + -oma, tumor]

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li·po·sar·co·ma -sär-'kō-mə n, pl -mas also -ma·ta -mət-ə a sarcoma arising from immature fat cells of the bone marrow

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n.

a rare malignant tumour of fat cells. It is most commonly found in the thigh and is rare under the age of 30 years. There are four main histological types: well-differentiated, myxoid, pleomorphic, and round-cell liposarcomas. Treatment is usually by surgery.

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lipo·sar·co·ma (lip″o-sahr-koґmə) [lipo- + sarcoma] a malignant mesenchymal tumor usually arising from the intermuscular fascia, particularly in the upper thigh, and occurring predominantly in male adults. It is derived from primitive or embryonal lipoblastic cells which exhibit varying degrees of lipoblastic and/or lipomatous differentiation, and is divided into several variant forms.