Abstract
BACKGROUND: Dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans (DFSP) is a rare mesenchymal cell-derived soft tissue tumor, especially on the scalp. As a result, there is a lack of insight into the etiology of its occurrence and the triggers of its recurrence, which makes diagnosis difficult. This paper reports a case with a long follow-up period in an attempt to provide some valuable evidence-based medicine to assist in the clinical work-up of diagnostic. CASE DESCRIPTION: We selected a young male who underwent surgical treatment in our hospital in 2013, and his pathological result at that time was "suspected dermatofibrosarcoma protuberans". At the same time, we followed the patient for 6 years and performed a literature review on the current management of DFSP. Six years later, the patient's scalp mass recurred after a head trauma. Based on the patient's medical history and pathogenesis of the disease, we believe that the patient's disease may be related to trauma. CONCLUSIONS: DFSP is rare in clinic, and it is easy to be misdiagnosed because of its atypical clinical symptoms and long diagnosis time. This article analyzed the case which has a long-time follow-up and reviewed the literature on DFSP. Therefore, this paper finds that trauma may be a causative factor in the development and recurrence, and provides a basis for evidence-based medicine for the diagnosis and treatment of this disease.