Paraspinal soft-tissue sarcoma. Classification of 14 cases

Successful Novel Treatment of a Paraspinal Primitive Neuroectodermal Tumor with Predominantly Glial Differentiation: A 3-Year Follow-Up After Surgery, Intensity-Modulated Radiation Therapy and Oral Temozolomide

BACKGROUND

Paraspinal masses are a relatively uncommon but diverse group of lesions that can be neoplastic or non-neoplastic. Peripheral primitive neuroectodermal tumors of the lumbar paraspinal region with diffuse and strong glial differentiation have never been reported before.

CASE DESCRIPTION

We report a primary paraspinal primitive neuroectodermal tumor with overwhelming glial differentiation in a 23-year-old female patient who presented with intractable right lower extremity pain. The patient underwent a 2-staged operation with gross total resection of the mass followed by intensity-modulated radiation therapy and oral temozolomide, a regimen employed for high-grade intracranial gliomas. Serial imaging revealed no evidence of recurrence after 3 years.

CONCLUSIONS

Although these lesions appear to be exceptionally rare, an approach similar to that of intracranial high-grade glial tumors was effective in our experience. Our patient had no evidence of recurrence at 3-year follow-up.

STEREOTACTIC RADIOSURGERY FOR THE TREATMENT OF PRIMARY SARCOMAS AND SARCOMA METASTASES OF THE SPINE

OBJECTIVE

Spinal sarcomas pose unique treatment dilemmas because of the difficulty of achieving adequate surgical margins and/or delivering curative radiation doses (65 Gy) in close proximity to the spinal cord. This study used hypofractionated stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) to deliver higher biologically effective doses to treat primary spinal sarcomas and spinal sarcoma metastases.

METHODS

Twenty-four patients with spinal or paraspinal sarcomas entered an Institutional Review Board-approved registry trial to evaluate SRS efficacy. They were assessed at regular intervals for pain control, disease progression, and complications for a minimum of 12 months or until death.

RESULTS

The median treatment dose for the spinal sarcoma lesions was 30 Gy at the 80% isodose in 3 fractions, with some variation based on tumor size, shape, and dose to adjacent critical structures. Seven patients were treated definitively; all had excellent pain relief and are alive with a mean follow-up period of 33 months. Two patients had complete tumor regression, 3 had partial regression, and 2 experienced recurrences and have been re-treated. Seven patients underwent resection and adjuvant SRS. One of 3 patients treated preoperatively had complete tumor regression, and none of the 4 patients treated postoperatively had a local recurrence with a mean follow-up period of 43.5 months. All 10 patients with sarcoma metastases to the spine (16 lesions) died, with a mean survival of 11.1 months from first spinal metastasis treatment. Complete pain relief was achieved in 8 patients, partial relief in 7 patients, and none in 1 patient. No patient developed radiation myelitis.

CONCLUSION

These preliminary results suggest that SRS may have a role in the definitive treatment of patients with primary spinal sarcomas who are deemed unresectable and as adjuvant treatment in those undergoing surgery and for palliation of sarcoma metastases.

Disorders of paravertebral lumbar muscles: from pathology to cross-sectional imaging

Paravertebral lumbar muscles are important for spine stabilization and mobility. They may be abnormal in several disorders that may be associated with pain or functional impairment. Special attention should be paid to the paravertebral muscles during imaging, so that a possible muscular disease is not overlooked, especially in patients with low back pain. This article reviews such imaging abnormalities.