RESUMO
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Due to their rare incidence soft tissue sarcomas (STS) are often resected without clear margins. The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of re-excision of STS on survival. METHODS: Out of 752 patients with STS (406 men and 346 women, average age 51 years), 310 patients were referred after an inadequate resection, 442 patients presented for primary treatment. Six hundred eighty-two patients were compared over a mean period of 65 months (median, 36 months) according to the treatment groups regarding their survival, clinical, surgical, and pathological data. RESULTS: The 5-year survival rate of 621 surgically treated patients was 53.9%. There was a continuous improvement in survival during the whole treatment period in the respective decades. The overall survival rate in both groups was not significantly different regardless of low- or high-grade malignancies. Patients with a re-resection did not have a higher rate of local recurrences; patients with a primary resection had a worse prognosis regarding metastases. A re-resection within 12 weeks indicated a better prognosis. CONCLUSIONS: An inadequate excision of a STS does not cogently mean deterioration of overall survival but necessitates an ample and quick re-resection.
