Disappearing bone disease (Gorham-stout disease): report of a case with a follow-up of 48 years.

A patient with osteolysis of the right hand after a metatarsal fracture at the age of 12 years is reported. The osteolysis progressed until the age of 21 years and was stable until the age of 59 years, when the patient died from a metastatic colon cancer. The article discusses the clinical, radiographic, and histologic features, and prognosis of idiopathic osteolysis (Gorham-Stout disease). Gorham-Stout disease is characterized by a non-familial, histological benign vascular proliferation producing lysis of the bone. The therapeutic options of Gorham-Stout disease is limited; radiotherapy has been used with success in single cases. Usually, the disease undergoes spontaneous arrest, as it occurred in our patient.