{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,5]],"date-time":"2026-03-05T08:08:56Z","timestamp":1772698136544,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":14,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,9]],"date-time":"2025-07-09T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1752019200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Oncol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a soft tissue sarcoma originating from primitive mesenchymal cells that exhibit varying degrees of skeletal muscle differentiation. Although RMS predominantly affects children and adolescents\u2014representing one of the most common pediatric solid malignancies\u2014it is exceptionally rare in adults, constituting less than 1% of adult cancers. Due to its embryonic mesenchymal origin, RMS can develop in virtually any organ. In adults, the most common sites are the trunk (27%) and limbs (26%), with the reproductive tract accounting for 17%. Current understanding of adult embryonal RMS primarily relies on case reports, as it is often misdiagnosed as other benign or malignant solid tumors. Here, we report a case of botryoid RMS of the uterine cervix in an adult woman. The diagnostic process was prolonged; after five visits and four biopsies, the diagnosis of rhabdomyosarcoma was finally confirmed. Based on pathological findings and imaging examinations, the clinical stage was determined to be T1N0M0 and Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study (IRS) IA. The patient was initially scheduled for surgery following neoadjuvant chemotherapy. However, after one cycle of chemotherapy, she experienced massive vaginal bleeding and prolapse of the cervical polypoid mass. Due to significant psychological distress, the patient declined further chemotherapy and insisted on proceeding with surgery. Subsequently, she underwent a robot-assisted laparoscopic radical hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, and pelvic lymph node dissection. A total of six cycles of the VA chemotherapy regimen were administered both pre- and postoperatively. Unfortunately, the 8-month postoperative follow-up results were unfavorable. Less than a year after surgery, contrast-enhanced pelvic MRI revealed enlarged pelvic lymph nodes, suggesting a possible recurrence. The purpose of this study was to report a case of embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma (ERMS) of the uterine cervix in an adult woman and to highlight the diagnostic and therapeutic challenges associated with this condition.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fonc.2025.1535933","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,9]],"date-time":"2025-07-09T11:50:42Z","timestamp":1752061842000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Case Report: A case of uterine embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma in adult female\u2014navigating the complexities of the diagnostic journey"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"15","author":[{"given":"Sijing","family":"Li","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University","place":["Chongqing, China"]},{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Women and Children\u2019s Hospital of Chongqing Medical University","place":["Chongqing, China"]},{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Chongqing Health Center for Women and Children","place":["Chongqing, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Dongni","family":"Zhou","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University","place":["Chongqing, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Qiao","family":"Zu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University","place":["Chongqing, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ying","family":"Jia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University","place":["Chongqing, China"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,9]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"e2023419","DOI":"10.4322\/acr.2023.419","article-title":"Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterine cervix in an adult female","volume":"13","author":"Jadhav","year":"2023","journal-title":"Autopsy Case Rep"},{"key":"B2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"98","DOI":"10.1111\/his.14449","article-title":"Evolving classification of rhabdomyosarcoma","volume":"80","author":"Agaram","year":"2022","journal-title":"Histopathology"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"20","DOI":"10.5114\/pjp.2018.75333","article-title":"Rhabdomyosarcoma in children - current pathologic and molecular classification","volume":"69","author":"Dziuba","year":"2018","journal-title":"Polish J Pathol"},{"key":"B4","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.18203\/2320-1770.ijrcog20164683","article-title":"Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma of the uterine cervix: a rare case report","volume":"6","author":"Gomes","year":"2017","journal-title":"Int J Reprod Contracept Obstet Gynecol"},{"key":"B5","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.4103\/ijmpo.ijmpo-84-16","article-title":"Round cell tumors: classification and immunohistochemistry","volume":"38","author":"Sharma","year":"2017","journal-title":"Indian J Med Paediatr Oncol"},{"key":"B6","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.47162\/RJME.64.1.10","article-title":"Uterine embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma in adult women: a case report on the challenging diagnosis and treatment","volume":"64","author":"Pop","year":"2023","journal-title":"Romanian J Morphol Embryol"},{"key":"B7","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"33","DOI":"10.17116\/patol20208205133","article-title":"Rabdomiosarkomy: strukturnoe raspredelenie i analiz immunogistokhimicheskogo profilya [Rhabdomyosarcomas: structural distribution and analysis of an immunohistochemical profile","volume":"82","author":"Botiralieva","year":"2020","journal-title":"Arkh Patol"},{"key":"B8","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1097\/PAS.0b013e31826e0271","article-title":"Embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma (botryoid type) of the uterine corpus and cervix in adult women: report of a case series and review of the literature","volume":"37","author":"Li","year":"2013","journal-title":"Am J Surg Pathol"},{"key":"B9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","DOI":"10.1002\/(SICI)1097-0142(19970915)80:6<1165::AID-CNCR21>3.0.CO;2-5","article-title":"Pretreatment TNM staging of childhood rhabdomyosarcoma: a report of the Intergroup Rhabdomyosarcoma Study Group. 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