The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence and impact of tourniquet use in patients undergoing limb salvage surgery with endoprosthetic reconstruction for a tumour around the knee. We retrieved data from the Prophylactic Antibiotic Regimens in Tumor Surgery (PARITY) trial; specifically, differences in baseline characteristics, surgical details, and postoperative functional outcomes between patients who had undergone surgery under tourniquet and those who had not. A linear regression model was created to evaluate the impact of tourniquet use on postoperative Toronto Extremity Salvage Scores (TESSs) while controlling for confounding variables. A negative-binomial regression model was constructed to explore predictors of postoperative length of stay (LOS).Aims
Methods
The incidence of bone metastases is between 20% to 75% depending on the type of cancer. As treatment improves, the number of patients who need surgical intervention is increasing. Identifying patients with a shorter life expectancy would allow surgical intervention with more durable reconstructions to be targeted to those most likely to benefit. While previous scoring systems have focused on surgical and oncological factors, there is a need to consider comorbidities and the physiological state of the patient, as these will also affect outcome. The primary aim of this study was to create a scoring system to estimate survival time in patients with bony metastases and to determine which factors may adversely affect this. This was a retrospective study which included all patients who had presented for surgery with metastatic bone disease. The data collected included patient, surgical, and oncological variables. Univariable and multivariable analysis identified which factors were associated with a survival time of less than six months and less than one year. A model to predict survival based on these factors was developed using Cox regression.Aims
Methods
Despite local treatment with systemic chemotherapy in Ewing’s sarcoma family tumours (ESFT), patients with detectable metastases at presentation have a markedly worse prognosis than those with apparently localised disease. We investigated the clinical, pathological and laboratory differences in 888 patients with ESFT, 702 with localised disease and 186 with overt metastases at presentation, seen at our institution between 1983 and 2006. Multivariate analyses showed that location in the pelvis, a high level of serum lactic dehydrogenase, the presence of fever and a short interval between the onset of symptoms and diagnosis were indicative of metastatic disease. The rate of overt metastases at presentation was 10% without these four risk factors, 22.7% with one, 31.4% with two, and 50% for those with three or four factors. We concluded that in ESFT the site, the serum level of lactic dehydrogenase, fever, and the interval between the onset of symptoms and diagnosis are indicators of tumours having a particularly aggressive metastatic behaviour.
We identified 42 patients who presented to our unit over a 27-year period with a secondary radiation-induced sarcoma of bone. We reviewed patient, tumour and treatment factors to identify those that affected outcome. The mean age of the patients at presentation was 45.6 years (10 to 84) and the mean latent interval between radiotherapy and diagnosis of the sarcoma was 17 years (4 to 50). The median dose of radiotherapy given was estimated at 50 Gy (mean 49; 20 to 66). There was no correlation between radiation dose and the time to development of a sarcoma. The pelvis was the most commonly affected site (14 patients (33%)). Breast cancer was the most common primary tumour (eight patients; 19%). Metastases were present at diagnosis of the sarcoma in nine patients (21.4%). Osteosarcoma was the most common diagnosis and occurred in 30 cases (71.4%). Treatment was by surgery and chemotherapy when indicated: 30 patients (71.4%) were treated with the intention to cure. The survival rate was 41% at five years for those treated with the intention to cure but in those treated palliatively the mean survival was only 8.8 months (2 to 22), and all had died by two years. The only factor found to be significant for survival was the ability to completely resect the tumour. Limb sarcomas had a better prognosis (66% survival at five years) than central ones (12% survival at five years) (p = 0.009). Radiation-induced sarcoma is a rare complication of radiotherapy. Both surgical and oncological treatment is likely to be compromised by the treatment received previously by the patient.
