Chondromyxoid Fibroma of Calcaneum – A Rare Case Report with Review of Literature

Chondromyxoid fibroma (CMF) is a slow-growing benign tumour seen in the metaphysis of a long bone. World health organization (WHO) Classification of Bone and Soft Tissue Tumours (2002) defines CMF as ''benign tumour characterized by lobules of spindle or stellate-shaped cells with abundant myxoid or chondroid intercellular material.1 Jaffe and Lichtenstein were the first to describe this tumour in 1943.2 They differentiated CMF as a benign lesion from chondrosarcoma which is a much more common malignant tumour. Chondromyxoid fibroma is a potentially aggressive tumour with a cartilage-like matrix. It accounts for approximately 1 % of all bone tumors.3 CMF is found in older children and young adults. This type of tumour normally affects people between the age of 10 to 30 years.3,4,5 It is associated with high local recurrence and with less than 2 % of malignant transformation5. While the cells of the CMF tumour do not undergo metastasis, but they can invade nearby tissues. It is painful and causes other symptoms like swelling, stiffness, tenderness, and abnormal growth under the skin. The most common site of this lesion is the tibia and other affected sites are the flat and facial bones, and sparsely in bones of the feet and hand.6,7,8,9 Its occurrence in calcaneum is rarely seen.9 So here we report a case of a female patient, presented with cystic swelling and pain in the left foot, which was diagnosed as CMF in excision biopsy.