Limb Salvage in Pelvic Tumors

Abstract

Bone tumors of the pelvis continue to present a difficult therapeutic problem. The prognosis for patients with malignant lesions of the pelvis is worse than that for patients with distal tumors (Dahlin, 1978). Moreover, hemipelvectomy, which has been the standard surgical treatment, is a debilitating and disfiguring procedure with a high incidence of postoperative morbidity. In recent years, interest has revived in limb-saving resection for malignant tumors of the pelvis (Enneking and Dunham, 1978). This has been fostered both by the recent enthusiasm for adjuvant chemotherapy and by improved techniques of oncologic reconstruction. Moreover, the improved techniques for clinical staging, particularly computed tomography, have enhanced the ability to determine the local extent of tumor involvement and have helped in the decision whether amputation is necessary or whether a limb-saving resection can be performed.