Giant Cell Tumor

For more than you ever wanted to know about the minor surgery I had a couple of weeks ago on my finger to remove a Giant Cell Tumor of the Tendon Sheath check out the in depth write up on Emedicine Orthopedic Surgery. If you read the whole article you'll see a guy's finger filleted open like mine would've been, as well as some removed masses, both of which are a bit gross looking.

From Emedicine:

Giant cell tumors of the tendon sheath are the second most common tumors of the hand, with simple ganglion cysts being the most common. Chassaignac first described these benign soft-tissue masses in 1852, and he overstated their biologic potential in referring to them as cancers of the tendon sheath.

Giant cell tumors of the soft tissue are classified into 2 types: the common localized type and the rare diffuse type. The rare diffuse form is considered the soft tissue counterpart of diffuse pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) and typically affects the lower extremities.1 Its anatomic distribution parallels that of PVNS, with lesions most commonly found around the knee, followed by the ankle and foot; however, the diffuse form occasionally affects the hand. Typically, these lesions, like those of PVNS, occur in young patients; 50% of cases are diagnosed in patients younger than 40 years. The diffuse form is often locally aggressive, and multiple recurrences after excision are common.

Click through for lots more reading.