Synovial sarcoma presenting as an intra-articular mass in a pediatric patient: a case report

BACKGROUND: Synovial sarcoma (SS) is one of the reported sarcomas in the pediatric and adult populations. Delay in diagnosis and treatment is common in SS cases. SS may be excised before the correct diagnosis is made. CASE PRESENTATION: we present a case involving a 4-year-old boy who visited our service with complaints of left knee pain and limited knee flexion. Initially, the child was diagnosed with osteochondromatosis. Surgical excision was opted, and initial histopathological examination revealed a fibrous histiocytoma. The slide and blocks were then brought to the King Faisal Specialist Hospital Research Center (KFSH&RC) and histopathologic analysis has shown a well-circumscribed nodule in the synovium with a sub-synovial monomorphic spindle cell sarcoma, confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, we strongly recommend considering all differential diagnoses for soft-tissue masses when planning surgical management.