Prognostic factors in soft tissue sarcomas: The Aarhus experience

In the present study, the outcome, patterns of local recurrence and surviva l, as well as prognostic factors, were evaluated in patients surgically tre ated for soft tissue sarcomas. Between January 1979 and July 1993, 316 cons ecutive patients were referred to the Sarcoma Centre in Aarhus with localis ed malignant soft tissue sarcoma of the extremities or trunk. If possible, the patients were treated with a limb-sparing resection, primarily by use o f a wide excision. 50 patients received adjuvant radiotherapy. There were 1 61 men (51%) and 155 women (49%) median age 56 years (range 1-94 years). 94 patients (30%) had tumours in the trunk, including shoulder and buttock le sions, 163 (52%) in the lower extremity and 59 (19%) in the upper extremity . 52 patients (16%) had grade 1 tumour, 60 (19%) grade 2 and 204 (65%) grad es 3A-3B. The 5-year local recurrence rate Mras 18% and the 5-year survival rate was 75%. Multivariate analysis indicated the following variables as i ndependent unfavourable factors for local recurrence: extracompartmental lo cation, histological high grade, local excision, no adjuvant radiotherapy a nd intralesional/marginal excision. Independent unfavourable factors for su rvival were advanced age, extracompartmental location, histological high gr ade, lower extremity location and large tumour size. If the variable local recurrence was included in the analysis, it was found to have a very strong influence on survival. Based on these variables, a prognostic model was de veloped. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.