Abstract
Retroperitoneal sarcomas are rare and heterogeneous tumors. We here report two cases of liposarcoma in the renal compartment with a literature review in order to emphasize on the anatomical and surgical features of this tumor location and on its possible prognostic implications. The first reported case was a 45-year old female patient with liposarcoma at the level of the left renal compartment. The diagnosis of myxoid liposarcoma was based on anatomo-pathological examination of the surgical specimen. The second reported case was a 70-year old man with liposarcoma at the level of the right renal compartment. The diagnosis of dedifferentiated liposarcoma was based on anatomo-pathological examination of the surgical specimen. Retroperitoneal sarcomas are often diagnosed with a palpable mass. The gold standard treatment is complete tumor resection with healthy resection margins and without damage or rupture. For this purpose resection involving adjacent organs is recommended by some authors. However the anatomical constraints of tretroperitoneal compartment and the often important tumor volume limit the possibilities to achieve a satisfactory resection. CT scan and MRI are very useful imaging techniques. Histological diagnosis poses some problems; therefore immunohistochemistry and sometimes molecular biology are significantly helpful. Patient evolution is marked by the frequent occurrence of recurrences. A specialized multidisciplinary management of these rare and very varied tumors is recommended in order to optimize therapeutic outcomes.