Primary yolk sac tumor of the endometrium combined with situs inversus totalis: a case report and literature review

Abstract

Abstract Background Yolk sac tumor (YST) is a highly malignant germ cell tumor, a majority of which originate from the gonads and are extremely rare from endometrium. Case presentation Here we present a case of a 42-year-old woman suffered from primary pure yolk sac tumor of the endometrium complicated with situs inversus totalis. The patient presented at our hospital with irregular vaginal bleeding. Imageological examination showed a space-occupying lesion in the cervix and the serum Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) level was significantly high (more than 1210ng/ml). Then she underwent total hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection. The subsequent postoperative pathological diagnosis was yolk sac tumor arising from the endometrium. Next, the patient was treated with 6 cycles of chemotherapy with Pingyangmycin, etoposide and cisplatin regimen and was alive without evidence of recurrence or distant metastases for 13 months. Conclusions This rare disease needs to be differentiated from endometrial epithelial neoplasia and the significant increase in AFP is helpful for diagnosis. Combined with previous literature reports, comprehensive staging laparotomy or maximum cytoreductive surgery complemented by standard chemotherapy can usually achieve a good efficacy.

Keywords

• Yolk sac tumor
• Endometrium
• Situs inversus totalis
• Germ cell tumors