Epidemiology of musculoskeletal tumors in a national referral orthopedic department. A study of 3482 cases

Abstract

Aim of the study: Musculoskeletal tumors are relatively rare, and their geographic distribution varies greatly around the world. In this study, we present the incidence, age distribution and localization of musculoskeletal tumors diagnosed and/or treated at a tertiary referral orthopedic department, catering to an entire Southeastern European country.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of prospectively collected data, in which all patients diagnosed and/or treated for musculoskeletal tumors at our Department in the period of 30 years (1981-2010) were included.

Results: Data of a total of 3482 patients with musculoskeletal tumors were collected. Average age of patients was 33.5 years (range, 2 months-88 years), with even distribution according to sex. Malignant tumors were seen in 20.7% of patients, more often in men (56.9%). Most common malignant tumors were osteosarcoma (estimated incidence: 1.68/million/year), chondrosarcoma (0.79/million/year) and Ewing sarcoma (0.76/million/year). Benign tumors and tumor-like lesions were found in 79.3% of patients, with slight female predominance. Most common benign bone lesions were osteochondroma (5.81/million/year), simple bone cyst (2.13/million/year), and enchondroma (2.05/million/year).

Conclusion: This report represents a first of its kind in our region, and gives representative results to be compared to other middle and south European countries. Further nationwide studies are needed to improve strategies in bone tumor diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords: Bone cysts; Chondroma; Chondrosarcoma; Ewing; Incidence; Osteochondroma; Osteosarcoma; Sarcoma.