A case report of benign fibrous histiocytoma

Abstract

Introduction

The benign fibrous histiocytoma is a rare tumor in the oral cavity. It was recognized by the WHO in 1960 as a lesion composed of cells that resemble round histiocytic and spindled fibroblastic morphology. We present a case of a 33-year-old female with extensive carious decay and soft tissue mass.

Materials and Methods

Full-text case reports and case series in the English language were searched in PubMed, Ovid, Scopus, and Google Scholar Databases from 1960 to 2023. Results regarding benign fibrous histiocytoma relevant to the case report were reviewed.

Results

We present a 33-year-old female with grossly decayed carious teeth in the buccal gingival area of the mandible. The patient presented with a 6-month history of a tissue-colored, pedunculated gingival mass. Immunohistochemistry CD68 and Factor XIIIa were performed and were positive and supportive of the diagnosis. A definitive diagnosis of benign fibrous histiocytoma was made based on the histopathologic findings.

Conclusion

The benign fibrous histiocytoma is a rare soft tissue entity in the oral cavity. The age of our patient fits the classical clinical presentation of this entity, however, the gingival location of the lesion is less commonly reported. Histologically, a nodular core of dense and well-vascularized fibrous connective tissue with a stroma of a diffuse infiltrate of mixed inflammatory cell infiltrate was seen. The submucosa demonstrated a benign proliferation of multinucleated giant cells and delicate spindle cells, characteristic for benign fibrous histiocytoma.