Causes

It's not clear what causes most angiosarcomas, though doctors have identified factors that may increase your risk of the disease.

Doctors know that something happens that causes a cell in the lining of a blood vessel or lymph vessel to develop an error (mutation) in its genetic code. The mutation tells the cell to grow quickly, making more abnormal cells. The abnormal cells continue living when other cells would die.

The result is a buildup of abnormal cells that grows from the affected blood vessel or lymph vessel. With time, cells may break off and spread (metastasize) to other areas of the body.