SURVIVAL OF ADULT PATIENTS WITH HEAD AND NECK SOFT-TISSUE SARCOMAS

A retrospective review and survival analysis is presented of 58 adult patients referred between 1963 and 1993 for treatment of a head and ne ck soft tissue sarcoma. The 5 year overall and disease-free survival w as 60% and 52% respectively. Univariate analysis indicated that age, p ositive margins, bone invasion, distant metastases, single modality tr eatment, histological grading, sites below the deep fascia and size mi ght be predictors of survival. On multivariate analysis, age, histolog ical grade, distant metastases, site and referral for recurrent diseas e emerged as prognostic factors known before treatment. By including v ariables known after treatment, age remained the most important indepe ndent prognostic factor followed by the presence of free margins, hist ological grading and distant metastases at presentation.