Adult soft tissue sarcoma local recurrence after adjuvant treatment without resection of core needle biopsy tract

The role of imaging in extremity sarcoma surgery

The surgical management of extremity bone and soft tissue sarcomas has evolved significantly over the last 50 years. The introduction and refinement of high-resolution cross-sectional imaging has allowed accurate assessment of anatomy and tumor extent, and in the current era more than 90% of patients can successfully undergo limb-salvage surgery. Advances in imaging have also revolutionized the clinician's ability to assess treatment response, detect metastatic disease, and perform intraoperative surgical navigation. This review summarizes the broad and essential role radiology plays in caring for sarcoma patients from diagnosis to post-treatment surveillance. Present evidence-based imaging paradigms are highlighted along with key future directions.

Pelvic bone sarcomas, prognostic factors, and treatment: A narrative review of the literature

Primary sarcomas of bone are rare malignant mesenchymal tumors. The most common bone sarcomas are osteosarcoma, Ewing's sarcoma, and chondrosarcoma. The prognosis has improved over the years, but bone sarcomas are still life-threatening tumors that need a multidisciplinary approach for diagnosis and treatment. Bone sarcomas arising in the pelvis present a unique challenge to orthopedic oncologists due to the absence of natural anatomical barriers, the close proximity of vital neurovascular structures, and the high mechanical demands placed on any pelvic reconstruction following the excision of the tumor. While radiotherapy has an important role especially in Ewing's sarcoma and chemotherapy for both Ewing's sarcoma and osteosarcoma, surgery remains the main choice of treatment for all three entities. While external hemipelvectomy has remained one option, the main aim of surgery is limb salvage. After complete tumor resection, the bone defect needs to be reconstructed. Possibilities to reconstruct the defect include prosthetic or biological reconstruction. The method of reconstruction is dependent on the location of tumor and the surgery required for its removal. The aim of this article is to give an insight into pelvic bone sarcomas, their oncological and surgical outcomes, and the options for treatment based on the authors' experiences.

Needle tract seeding of a sclerosing epithelioid fibrosarcoma in a biopsy tract: a case report

BACKGROUND

A sclerosing epithelioid fibrosarcoma (SEF) is an uncommon tumor of the deep soft tissue. An SEF has been described as a low-grade tumor with high local recurrence and metastatic rates. Generally, in bone and soft tissue tumors, a resection of the biopsy route is recommended; however, there is limited evidence with respect to the dissemination of the tumor tissue during a needle biopsy.

CASE PRESENTATION

A mass in the right pelvic cavity, with no symptoms, was observed in a 45-year-old woman during a gynecological examination. Computed tomography (CT) revealed a multilocular mass with calcification in the pelvic cavity. The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) showed an iso-signal intensity on T1 weighted images and hypo- and iso-signal intensity on T2 weighted images. The CT-guided core needle biopsy was performed using a dorsal approach, and the biopsy diagnosis was a low-grade spindle cell tumor. The tumor was excised using an anterior approach. The tumor tissue comprised spindle cells and epithelioid cells with irregular nuclei, and the immunohistological analysis was positive for vimentin and epithelial membrane antigen, which was consistent with a diagnosis of sclerosing epithelioid fibrosarcoma. Five years after the surgery, the MRI showed a tumor recurrence in the subcutaneous tissue of the right buttock, which was consistent with the needle biopsy tract. The patient underwent a tumor excision, and the resected tumor was similar to the primary tumor.

CONCLUSIONS

The recurrent tumor was excised with a surgical margin, and the tumor specimen had the histological features of a sclerosing epithelioid fibrosarcoma. It was difficult to investigate the association of the core needle biopsy with the tumor recurrence because the approach of the biopsy tract is usually same as that used in a tumor excision. However, the present case indicated the tumor may recur in the biopsy tract of a soft tissue sarcoma. Surgeons should be aware of the possibility of disseminating tumor tissues in a needle biopsy.

Sarcoma Imaging Surveillance

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are a heterogeneous group of solid tumors. There are many histologic subtypes. The prognosis after treatment may be estimated by the analysis of the type of tumor, grade, depth, size at diagnosis, and age of the patient. These type of sarcomas most commonly metastasize to the lungs and may have a relatively high rate of local recurrence, depending on the histologic type and surgical margins. Patients with recurrence have a poorer prognosis. The surveillance of patients with STS is therefore extremely important. This review analyzes the role of MR imaging and US in detecting local recurrence.

Percutaneous biopsy of musculoskeletal tumors and the potential for needle tract seeding: technical considerations, current controversies, and outcomes

Multidisciplinary communication and planning between the musculoskeletal radiologist and orthopedic oncologist are essential for proper biopsy planning when a primary musculoskeletal malignancy is suspected. Image-guided percutaneous biopsy allows for real-time visualization of the biopsy needle and surrounding structures, combining high diagnostic accuracy with safety and cost-effectiveness. However, determining a surgically optimal biopsy trajectory for a mass can be technically challenging due to critical surrounding anatomy or challenging needle approach angles. Inappropriately placed biopsies can have serious repercussions on patient function and oncological survival. The potential for needle tract seeding and local recurrence after biopsy of sarcoma has been central to the debate regarding the need for excision of the biopsy tract. This multidisciplinary review highlights current controversies in the field, including the issue of core needle biopsy tracts and their excision, technical considerations and advances in image-guidance in the setting of challenging biopsies, advances in histopathological diagnostics with implications for targeted therapy in sarcoma, as well as surgical and oncological outcomes after needle tract biopsy.

Construction of Osteosarcoma Diagnosis Model by Random Forest and Artificial Neural Network

Osteosarcoma accounts for 28% of primary bone malignancies in adults and up to 56% in children and adolescents (<20 years). However, early diagnosis and treatment are still inadequate, and new improvements are still needed. Missed diagnoses exist due to fewer traditional diagnostic methods, and clinical symptoms are often already present before diagnosis. This study aimed to develop novel and efficient predictive models for the diagnosis of osteosarcoma and to identify potential targets for exploring osteosarcoma markers. First, osteosarcoma and normal tissue expression microarray datasets were downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO). Then we screened the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the osteosarcoma and normal groups in the training group. Next, in order to explore the biologically relevant role of DEGs, Metascape and enrichment analyses were also performed on DEGs. The “randomForest” and “neuralnet” packages in R software were used to select representative genes and construct diagnostic models for osteosarcoma. The next step is to validate the model of the artificial neural network. Then, we performed an immune infiltration analysis by using the training set data. Finally, we constructed a prognostic model using representative genes for prognostic analysis. The copy number of osteosarcoma was also analyzed. A random forest classifier identified nine representative genes (ANK1, TGFBR3, RSF21, HSPB8, ITGA7, RHD, AASS, GREM2, NFASC). HSPB8, RHD, AASS, and NFASC were genes we identified that have not been previously reported to be associated with osteosarcoma. The osteosarcoma diagnostic model we constructed has good performance with areas under the curves (AUCs) of 1 and 0.987 in the training and validation groups, respectively. This study opens new horizons for the early diagnosis of osteosarcoma and provides representative markers for the future treatment of osteosarcoma. This is the first study to pioneer the establishment of a genetic diagnosis model for osteosarcoma and advance the development of osteosarcoma diagnosis and treatment.

Sarcomas of the extremities and the pelvis: comparing local recurrence after incisional and after core-needle biopsy

Background

The degree of contamination of healthy tissue with tumor cells during a biopsy in bone or soft tissue sarcomas is clearly dependant on the type of biopsy. Some studies have confirmed a clinically relevant contamination of the biopsy tract after incisional biopsies, as opposed to core-needle biopsies. The aim of our prospective study was to evaluate the risk of local recurrence depending on the biopsy type in extremity and pelvis sarcomas.

Methods

We included 162 patients with a minimum follow-up of 6 months after wide resection of extremity sarcomas. All diagnostic and therapeutic procedures were performed at a single, dedicated sarcoma center. The excision of the biopsy tract after an incisional biopsy was performed as a standard with all tumor resections. All patients received their follow-up after the conclusion of therapy at our center by means of regional MRI studies and, at a minimum, CT of the thorax to rule out pulmonary metastatic disease. The aim of the study was the evaluation of the influence of the biopsy type and of several other clinical factors on the rate of local recurrence and on the time of local recurrence-free survival.

Results

One hundred sixty-two patients with bone or soft tissue tumors of the extremities and the pelvis underwent either an incisional or a core-needle biopsy of their tumor, with 70 sarcomas (43.2%) being located in the bone. 84.6% of all biopsies were performed as core-needle biopsies. The median follow-up time was 55.6 months, and 22 patients (13.6%) developed a local recurrence after a median time of 22.4 months. There were no significant differences between incisional and core-needle biopsy regarding the risk of local recurrence in our subgroup analysis with differentiation by kind of tissue, grading of the sarcoma, and perioperative multimodal therapy.

Conclusions

In a large and homogenous cohort of extremity and pelvic sarcomas, we did not find significant differences between the groups of incisional and core-needle biopsy regarding the risk of local recurrence. The excision of the biopsy tract after incisional biopsy in the context of the definitive tumor resection seems to be the decisive factor for this result.

Overview of malignant soft-tissue sarcomas of the limbs

Although soft-tissue masses are common, sarcomas are rare malignant neoplasms showing variable mesenchymal differentiation and can occur at any anatomical site. Limb soft-tissue sarcomas (STS) are rare, but often lethal tumours. Although there are scores of historical pathological subtypes, this article will deal with the commonest: liposarcoma, leiomyosarcoma (LMS), undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma (UPS), synovial sarcoma, myxofibrosarcoma, malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumour (MPNST), epithelioid sarcoma, alveolar rhabdosarcoma, angiosarcoma and radiation-induced sarcoma (RIS). Following a review of >4,000 adult patients with limb sarcoma from our specialist soft-tissue tumour database, we summarise the literature and their imaging findings, with emphasis on radiological hallmarks that can aide in diagnosis and management. Increased awareness of sarcoma when challenged with a new mass in the extremity can ensure timely and appropriate treatment.

Role of Radiation Therapy for Newly Diagnosed Retroperitoneal Sarcoma

OPINION STATEMENT

Soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are rare, aggressive, and heterogenous tumors, comprising approximately 1% of adult cancers with over 50 different subtypes. The mainstay of treatment for retroperitoneal sarcomas (RPS) includes surgical resection. The addition of radiation therapy (RT), either preoperatively or postoperatively, has been used to potentially decrease the risk of local recurrence. The recently published results from STRASS (EORTC-STBSG 62092-22092), which randomized patients to receive or not receive preoperative radiation, indicate no abdominal recurrence-free survival benefit (primary endpoint) nor overall survival benefit to date from the addition of preoperative RT prior to surgical resection in patients with RPS. Keeping in mind caveats of subgroup analyses, the data show a significant reduction in local recurrence with radiation therapy in resected patients and non-significant trends toward improved abdominal recurrence-free survival in all patients and improved local control and abdominal recurrence-free survival in patients with liposarcoma and low-grade sarcoma. Given the high rate of local failure with surgery alone, it is possible that higher RT dose and/or selective RT dose painting may improve outcomes. Prior to treatment, the authors encourage multidisciplinary review and discussion of management options at a sarcoma center for patients with RPS. Selective use of RT may be considered for patients at high risk of local recurrence.

Needle tract seeding following percutaneous biopsy of pediatric head and neck sarcoma: A case report

This case report demonstrates the possibility of sarcoma biopsy needle track seeding from FNA/Core Needle Biopsy during the workup of a pediatric head and neck mass. Though not currently widely practiced in head and neck tumors, surgeons may consider placing biopsy tracks in the area of planned resection for suspected head and neck malignancies as is more common in approaches to extremity sarcoma.

Sarcoma Surveillance: A Review of Current Evidence and Guidelines

After initial treatment of sarcoma, disease progression may occur in the form of local recurrence, pulmonary metastases, or extrapulmonary metastases. As such, surveillance is an important aspect of management, but no universally accepted practice standards are found. In the absence of strong evidence, and to allow for individualized care, existing guidelines contain flexibility in terms of both the frequency and modality of surveillance. In general, they agree that follow-up should be more intense in the early years after treatment, especially for high-grade sarcomas, and continue for at least 10 years. For local recurrence, data suggest that physical examination is usually sufficient for monitoring; in addition, some guidelines endorse imaging routinely, whereas others only as clinically indicated. For pulmonary metastasis, either radiograph or CT is recommended, with the latter having theoretical advantages but no proven survival benefit to date. Extrapulmonary metastases are rare in most sarcoma types, so the literature only supports extrapulmonary surveillance for certain diagnoses. This topic is complicated by the diversity of sarcomas, the limited evidence, and the indefinite, often conflicting recommendations; therefore, it is critical for providers to understand the existing research and guidelines to determine optimal surveillance strategies for their patients.

Core needle biopsy versus incisional biopsy for differentiation of soft-tissue sarcomas: A systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Controversies exist regarding the biopsy technique of choice for the accurate diagnosis of soft-tissue sarcoma (STS). The objective of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of core needle biopsy (CNB) versus incisional biopsy (IB) in STS with reference to the final histopathological result.

METHODS

Studies regarding the diagnostic accuracy of CNB and IB in detecting STS were searched systematically in the MEDLINE and EMBASE databases. Estimates of sensitivity and specificity with associated 95% CIs for diagnostic accuracy were calculated. The risk of bias was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies version 2 (QUADAS-2).

RESULTS

A total of 17 studies comprising 2680 patients who underwent 1582 CNBs and 241 IBs with subsequent tumor resection met the inclusion criteria. The sensitivity and specificity of CNB and IB to detect the dignity of lesions were 97% (95% CI, 95%-98%) and 99% (95% CI, 97%-99%), respectively, and 96% (95% CI, 92%-99%) and 100% (95% CI, 94%-100%), respectively. Estimates of the sensitivity and specificity of CNB and IB to detect the STS histotype were 88% (95% CI, 86%-90%) and 77% (95% CI, 72%-81%), respectively, and 93% (95% CI, 87%-97%) and 65% (95% CI, 49%-78%), respectively. Patients who underwent CNB had a significantly reduced risk of complications compared with patients who underwent IB (risk ratio, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.03-0.56 [P ≤ .01). Quality assessment of studies revealed a high risk of bias.

CONCLUSIONS

CNB has high accuracy in diagnosing the dignity of lesions and STS histotype in patients with suspected STS with fewer complications compared with IB. Therefore, CNB should be regarded as the primary biopsy technique.

Skeletal muscle metastasis from the most common carcinomas orthopedic surgeons deal with. A systematic review of the literature

INTRODUCTION

There is scarce information in the literature dealing with the clinical presentation, management and oncologic outcomes of skeletal muscle metastases (SMM). We sought to perform a systematic review of the literature to investigate: (1) tumor characteristics of SMM, (2) therapeutic approach, and (3) oncological outcomes.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was performed using PubMed and EMBASE search engines. A total of 3231 references were reviewed and 49 studies were included. Demographic data, presentation characteristics, and oncological outcomes were recorded. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS 22.0 software (IBM; Armonk, New York) and Comprehensive Meta-Analysis software version 3 (Biostat, Inc.), with p < 0.05 as statistically significant.

RESULTS

A total of 231 patients were included. These tumors presented more commonly on males 58.4% (135/231), with a mean age of 60.08 ± 10.6 years, and in the axial area 39.6% (88/222). The most common carcinoma type was lung 41.1% (95/231). Resection of a single metastases did not change survival significantly (p = 0.992). LRR was higher within the group of patients that underwent WLE compared with non-WLE [31.3% (23/74) vs. 8.7% (2/23), p ≤ 0.001]. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis for the entire cohort showed an estimate of 15.3 months [95% confidence interval (CI) 11.6-19; standard error (SE) 0.432], with lung carcinoma carrying the worst prognosis 6.7 months (95% CI 5.4-8.07; SE 0.68). Patients with a single SMM showed a worse estimate mean survival time compared to patients with multiple metastases limited to muscles [8.6 months (95% CI 4.7-12.5; SE 2.0) vs 25.4 months (95% CI 19.8-31.05; SE 2.8; p ≤ 0.001)].

CONCLUSIONS

Overall survival is poor and is driven mainly by the type of carcinoma. An Increased LRR might be present due to the systemic nature of the condition, and degree of control of the primary carcinoma.

Association of core needle biopsy tract resection with local recurrence in extremity soft tissue sarcoma

OBJECTIVE

Due to minimal tissue violation in percutaneous core needle biopsy (CNB), in contrast to open biopsy, the risk of tumor seeding and subsequent local recurrence (LR) along the biopsy tract remains unclear in extremity soft tissue sarcoma (STS). This study sought to examine the association of CNB tract resection on LR in a large STS institutional database.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

After a retrospective review of the 116 patients who underwent CNB prior to surgery for previously untreated non-metastatic extremity STS, 36 patients who did not have CNB tracts resected (CNB-NR) were matched with 36 who had CNB tracts resected (CNB-R) for the factors that are known to affect LR.

RESULTS

Two patients (6%) developed LR in the CNB-R group, whereas three patients (8%) developed LR in the CNB-NR group (P = 0.643). On Kaplan-Meier analysis, there was no significant difference in LR-free survival between the two groups (94.3% ± 3.9 for the CNB-R group vs. 93.8% ± 4.3 for the CNB-NR group, P = 0.747).

CONCLUSION

Our data suggest any influence of a CNB tract resection on LR, within the limitations of this study, is likely to be of minor clinical importance in extremity STS. Although it would be prudent to resect the CNB tract in most cases, not resecting the CNB tract is a feasible option if identification or removal of the CNB tract proves difficult.

Are Biopsy Tracts a Concern for Seeding and Local Recurrence in Sarcomas?

BACKGROUND

A biopsy is the final step in the diagnosis of sarcomas. Complete resection of the biopsy tract traditionally has been recommended in musculoskeletal oncology guidelines, as that tract is considered potentially seeded with tumor cells. However, to our knowledge, the frequency and implications of contamination of the biopsy tract-specifically with respect to the likelihood of local recurrence-and the factors that affect cell seeding are not well described.

QUESTIONS/PURPOSES

We asked: (1) How often are biopsy tracts contaminated with pathologically detectable tumor cells at the time of tumor resection? (2) What factors, in particular biopsy type (open versus percutaneous), are associated with tumoral seeding? (3) Is biopsy tract contamination associated with local recurrence?

METHODS

This is a retrospective study of a database with patient data collected from a single center between 2000 and 2013. We treated 221 patients with sarcomas. A total of 27 patients (12%) were excluded and 14 (6%) were lost to followup. One hundred eighty patients finally were included in the analysis who either had biopsies at our center (112) or biopsies at outside institutions (68). Of those performed at our center, 15 (13%) were open and 97 (87%) were percutaneous; of those at outside centers, those numbers were 47 (69%) and 21 (31%) respectively. Median followup was 40 months (range, 24-152 months). During the study period, we generally performed percutaneous biopsies as a standard practice for the diagnosis of bone and soft tissue sarcomas and open biopsies were done when the percutaneous procedure failed to provide a histologic characterization. The mean age of the population was 48 years (range, 7-87 years); 60% were male; 42% had bone sarcomas. Nineteen patients had preoperative radiotherapy and 56 had postoperative radiotherapy. Fifty-seven patients received neoadjuvant chemotherapy and 73 had adjuvant chemotherapy. We determined what proportion of biopsy tracts were contaminated by pathologic analysis of the biopsy tract specimen; during the period in question, our routine practice was to excise the biopsy tract whenever possible at the time of the definitive resection. Using the logistic regression test and Mantel-Haenszel test, we compared open with percutaneous biopsies in terms of the proportion of those that were contaminated at our site and for outside referral biopsies separately, because we do not assume the level of expertise was the same (our site is a referral tumor center). We compared the local recurrence-free survival between patients with and without contamination and between open and percutaneous biopsies using the Kaplan Meier test, again separating those performed at our site from those referred for purposes of this analysis.

RESULTS

Twenty-one of 180 biopsy tracts were contaminated (12%). Twenty of 62 (32%) of the open biopsies and one of 118 (0.8%) of the percutaneous core needle biopsies had cell seeding (odds ratio [OR], 56; 95% CI, 7-428; p < 0.001. One of 97 (1%) percutaneous biopsies performed in our center, and none of the 21 (0%) percutaneous biopsies performed in other centers had contaminated biopsy tracts (p = 0.047). Two of 15 (13%) open biopsies performed at our center and 18 of 41(38%) open biopsies performed at other centers had contaminated biopsy tracts (OR, 4; 95% CI, 1-7; p = 0.001). Four of 74 (5%) bone sarcomas and 18 of 106 (17%) soft tissue sarcomas had biopsy tract contamination (OR, 3; 95% CI, 1-10; p = 0.023). The local recurrence-free survival was longer for patients without contaminated tracts (mean, 107 months; 95% CI, 74-141 months) than for those with biopsy tract seeding (mean, 11 months; 95% CI, 1-20 months; p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Open biopsies were associated with an increased risk of tumoral seeding of the biopsy site, and tumoral seeding was associated with an increased risk of local recurrence. However, it is possible that other factors, such as increased complexity of the tumor or a difficult location, influenced the decision to obtain an open biopsy. Even so, based on these results, we believe that higher risk of local recurrence may be caused by an incomplete biopsy tract resection. In our opinion, the percutaneous biopsy with neoadjuvant or adjuvant therapy is the preferred method of biopsy at our center.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III, therapeutic study.

Review of Osteosarcoma and Current Management

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary malignancy of bone in children and young adults. This tumor has a very heterogeneous genetic profile and lacks any consistent unifying event that leads to the pathogenesis of osteosarcoma. In this review, some of the important genetic events involved in osteosarcoma will be highlighted. Additionally, the clinical diagnosis of osteosarcoma will be discussed, as well as contemporary chemotherapeutic and surgical management of this tumor. Finally, the review will discuss some of the novel approaches to treating this disease.

Utility of Examination of Biopsy Tracts in Osteosarcoma Resection Specimens

OBJECTIVES

To determine the utility and necessity of submitting tissue sections from the biopsy tracts of osteosarcoma resection specimens.

METHODS

The prevalence of residual tumor in representative sections of osteosarcoma biopsy tracts was assessed in a series of 97 osteosarcoma resection specimens.

RESULTS

No residual tumor cells were identified in 97 sampled biopsy tracts (0%; 95% confidence interval, 0%-2.5%).

CONCLUSIONS

Pathologists do not need to submit sections of resected biopsy tracts unless there is clinical or gross evidence that would warrant further examination.

Extremity Soft Tissue Sarcoma: Tailoring Resection to Histologic Subtype

Soft tissue sarcomas comprise tumors originating from mesenchymal or connective tissue. Histologic grade is integral to prognosis. Because sarcoma management is multimodal, histologic subtype should inform optimum treatment. Appropriate biopsy and communication between surgeon and pathologist can help ensure a correct diagnosis. Treatment often involves surgical excision with wide margins and adjuvant radiotherapy. There is no consensus on what constitutes an adequate margin for histologic subtypes. An appreciation of how histology corresponds with tumor biology and surgical anatomic constraints is needed for management of this disease. Even with the surgical goal of wide resection being obtained, many patients do not outlive their disease.

ACR Appropriateness Criteria Follow-Up of Malignant or Aggressive Musculoskeletal Tumors

Appropriate imaging modalities for the follow-up of malignant or aggressive musculoskeletal tumors include radiography, MRI, CT, (18)F-2-fluoro-2-deoxy-D-glucose PET/CT, (99m)Tc bone scan, and ultrasound. Clinical scenarios reviewed include evaluation for metastatic disease to the lung in low- and high-risk patients, for osseous metastatic disease in asymptomatic and symptomatic patients, for local recurrence of osseous tumors with and without significant hardware present, and for local recurrence of soft tissue tumors. The timing for follow-up of pulmonary metastasis surveillance is also reviewed. The ACR Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed every three years by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and review include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer-reviewed journals and the application of a well-established consensus methodology (modified Delphi) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures by the panel. In those instances in which evidence is lacking or not definitive, expert opinion may be used to recommend imaging or treatment.

Biopsies in the Community Lead to Postoperative Complications in Soft Tissue Sarcomas

Percutaneous biopsies allow for precise diagnosis in soft tissue sarcomas and have a low rate of complications. However, it is unknown whether biopsies performed in a community setting lead to higher rates of wound complications at the time of resection. The goal of this study was to determine whether percutaneous biopsies performed at a sarcoma center have lower rates of wound complications compared with those performed in the community setting. A total of 125 patients with soft tissue sarcomas were treated with neoadjuvant radiation followed by limb-sparing resection. Of these, 92 underwent percutaneous biopsy. Patient, demographic, and treatment variables and postoperative wound complications were reviewed. Predictors of wound complications were evaluated with Fisher's exact test for univariate analysis and with logistic regression for multivariate analysis. The wound complication rate was 27% for open or percutaneous biopsies. When only percutaneous biopsies were assessed, the wound complication rate was 25%. The wound complication rate for percutaneous biopsies was 18% when the biopsy was performed at the authors' sarcoma center and 46% when the biopsy was performed in the community setting (P=.01). The Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events grade 4 wound complication rate was 73% in patients who underwent percutaneous biopsy at a community hospital vs 14% in those who underwent percutaneous biopsy at the authors' sarcoma center (P=.005). Multivariate analysis showed that lower-extremity soft tissue sarcomas (P=.03) and biopsies performed in the community setting (P=.01) had an increased rate of postoperative wound complications. Percutaneous biopsies performed at community hospitals had an increased incidence of grade 4 postoperative wound toxicity compared with biopsies done at tertiary centers. These wound results confirmed previous recommendations that biopsy of soft tissue sarcomas should be performed at an experienced sarcoma center.

Soft tissue masses for the general orthopedic surgeon

Soft tissue sarcomas are a rare, heterogeneous group of malignancies that should be included in the differential diagnosis for any patient presenting with a soft tissue mass. This article reviews strategies for differentiating between benign and malignant soft tissue masses. Epidemiology, appropriate workup, and treatment of soft tissue sarcomas are reviewed.

[Resection margins in bone tumors: what is adequate?]

BACKGROUND

In multimodal therapy concepts for bone sarcomas, tumor resection is a deciding factor. Modern imaging techniques have made preoperative resection planning much easier and precisely allow tumor boundaries to be defined.

OBJECTIVES

There is recent data clearly showing that compartmental resections have no significant advantages compared to wide resections in terms of local recurrence or overall survival. But it remains unclear, how "wide" a "wide resection" should be done.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A literature review of the last 15 years, discussion of review articles and multidisciplinary expert opinions as published in major multinational studies.

RESULTS

Intralesional resection (R1) is feasible in highly differentiated (G1) chondrosarcoma (atypical cartilaginous tumor) of the extremity. In both osteosarcoma and Ewing's sarcoma, R0 resection is mandatory. If these fails, there is evidence that in selected cases of osteosarcoma, adjuvant radiotherapy is justified if a second resection is not possible. Expecting contaminated (R1) margins in patients with Ewing's sarcoma (e.g., in critical locations such as the pelvis), radiotherapy only is better than hoping for the "cure" of insufficient resections margins with a combination of both methods. With regard to the necessary safety distances for a R0 resection, recommendations from the literature are heterogeneous. In addition to the distance measurement, the quality of the anatomic resection margins (e.g., fascia) is of great importance. A distinct recommendation of at least x millimeters or centimeters cannot be given based on the currently available data.

CONCLUSION

The aim of the resection of a bone sarcoma should be a wide margin with the exception of chondrosarcoma (G1). Ultraradical resections which sacrifice vital structures in order to extend an already wide (R0) resection margin showed no significant benefits. In patients with osteosarcoma, adjuvant radiotherapy should be considered if resection or re-resection is not in sound tissue (R1). Patients with Ewing's sarcoma should not undergo resection if a contaminated margin is expected. In patients with chondrosarcoma, the available data as for example from pelvic tumors are contradictory and do not allow a clear recommendation.

Treatment of a non-typical hepatic pseudolesion complicated by greatly elevated alpha fetoprotein: case report and literature review

Background

Hepatic pseudolesions detected by helical computed tomography (CT) are not rare, but it is difficult to make a final diagnosis when the hepatic lesion is complicated by the presence of greatly elevated alpha fetoprotein (AFP). Clinical treatment of non-typical hepatic pseudolesions complicated by greatly elevated AFP should confirm the diagnosis and minimize trauma.

Case presentation

Non-invasive procedures including ultrasonography, CT, and micro-invasive digital subtraction angiography could not safely differentiate this lesion from a malignant focus when it was complicated by greatly elevated AFP. Laparoscopic hepatectomy was performed, and pathological analysis showed chronic hepatitis, nodular regenerative hyperplasia, focal nodular hyperplasia of the liver, and mild vascular malformation. The tissue was HbsAg(−), HbcAg(−), and AFP(+).

Conclusion

Heightened awareness of hepatic pseudolesion complicated by primarily elevated AFP will help physicians avoid unnecessary invasive procedures. Hepatic biopsy is inevitable because of greatly elevated AFP. For suspected hepatic pseudolesion with elevated AFP, needle-core biopsy and follow-up surveillance instead of hepatectomy are recommended to find the source of AFP and make a final diagnosis of pseudolesion.