Oncologic outcomes of primary bone sarcomas of the pelvis

Abstract

Although many studies have been performed for evaluation of surgical techniques and surgical morbidity in cases of primary pelvic sarcoma, few have addressed the long term oncologic outcomes for these patients. Therefore, the outcome of 41 patients with primary pelvic bone sarcomas were followed for 2-13 years (average, 6 years; median, 5 years). There were 18 chondrosarcomas (15 low grade and 3 high grade tumors), 11 osteosarcomas (1 low grade and 10 high grade tumors), 5 high grade malignant fibrous histiocytomas of bone, 5 Ewing's sarcomas, 1 undifferentiated sarcoma, and 1 low grade angiosarcoma of bone. Fifteen of the 17 patients with low grade tumors survived (88%), whereas only 6 of the 24 patients with high grade tumors survived (25%). Local disease recurred in 1 of the 24 (4%) patients with high grade tumors and in none of the patients with low grade tumors. Reoperations for complications were required in 33% of the patients. A difference could not be demonstrated in the quality of surgical margins or in the surgical morbidity, patient survival, and rate of local recurrence between patients treated with hemipelvectomy (8) and those treated with pelvic resection (32). Patients with low grade pelvic sarcomas have a good prognosis after pelvic resection, but those with high grade sarcomas continue to have a poor prognosis.