Embryonal Rhabdomyosarcoma in the External Ear

Abstract

The authors describe two cases of embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma in the external ear; one in a girl, 9 years of age, with a rapid, lethal clinical course in spite of repeated wide surgical excisions, and the other in a female, 26 years of age, radically treated for two recurrences and still alive 5 years after the appearance of the tumour. The differential diagnosis in the ear region between embryonal rhabdomyo-sarcomas and fetal rhabdomyomas, a new tumour entity with a predilection for the ear (Enzinger), is especially considered. The therapy and factors influencing the prognosis are discussed.