A 14-year retrospective review of angiosarcoma: clinical characteristics, prognostic factors, and treatment outcomes with surgery and chemotherapy

Abstract

Purpose: Angiosarcoma is a rare vascular malignancy, and there are few published data to guide chemotherapy treatment decisions. We present a retrospective analysis of angiosarcoma encompassing all anatomic sites of disease presenting to a single institution over a 14-year period. Characteristics at presentation and prognostic factors are reviewed. For patients with unresectable disease, progression-free survival with various chemotherapy regimens is described.

Patients and methods: Pathological confirmation of all cases was performed before they were included in this analysis. One hundred twenty-five patients with angiosarcoma were seen and treated between January 1, 1990 and December 31, 2003.

Results: Angiosarcoma showed marked variation by anatomic site regarding gender ratio, median age at diagnosis, overall survival, and response to chemotherapy. Overall 5-year survival was 31% for angiosarcoma. Superficial depth and negative microscopic surgical margins correlated with longer overall survival, but tumor size did not reach significance as a prognostic factor. For unresectable angiosarcoma, doxorubicin based regimens yielded progression-free survival of 3.7-5.4 months. Paclitaxel achieved a progression-free survival of 6.8 months for scalp angiosarcoma and 2.8 months for sites below the clavicle.

Discussion: Angiosarcoma is an aggressive malignancy characterized by biologic heterogeneity at different anatomic sites and relative sensitivity to paclitaxel and doxorubicin.