Definition of Angiosarcoma
Angiosarcoma: A type of cancer that begins in the
lining of blood vessels. This type of tumor tends to be aggressive, recur
locally, and spread widely. It can originate anywhere in the body but is well
known to arise in skin, soft tissue, liver, breast, spleen, bone, lung and heart.
Factors predisposing to angiosarcoma include chronic lymphedema (as from a radical
mastectomy), radiotherapy, foreign materials
(such as Dacron, shrapnel, steel, and plastic) in the body, and environmental
agents (such arsenic solutions used to spray grapevines, the radiation-emitting
contrast agent Thorotrast, and vinyl chloride in the plastic
industry).
Last Editorial Review: 5/17/2002
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