Malignant fibrous histiocytoma arising within a bone infarct in a patient with sickle cell trait

Sarcoma associated with osteonecrosis or bone infarction is a rare but well-documented pathological event. In this report, a 69-year-old man with sickle cell trait presented with malignant fibrous histiocytoma (MFH) in his distal tibia. The resected tumor was found in association with a large medullary infarct that extended 10 cm proximal from the tumor site. Bone infarcts can be caused by a number of processes including corticosteroid overuse, alcoholism, dysbarism, and hemoglobinopathies such as sickle cell disease. Patients with sickle cell anemia often develop osteonecrosis, but osteonecrosis has also been reported in people with sickle cell trait, albeit much more rarely. Our patient is only the third reported case of infarct-related bone sarcoma in a patient with sickle cell trait. Bone infarction may be a rare though serious consequence of sickle cell trait.