Management of retroperitoneal sarcomas and patient survival.

Sixty-eight patients with retroperitoneal sarcomas had an estimated 5 year survival rate of 34 percent after initial treatment. Patients with complete resection of the tumor had a 5 year rate of 64 percent and a 7 year rate of 56 percent. The respective survival rates for patients with partial excision were 33 percent and 0 and for those with only a biopsy the survival rates at 5 and 7 years were 10 percent. Radiotherapy with chemotherapy or chemotherapy alone was given to 47 patients. In the treatment of macroscopic tumor, radiotherapy or radiotherapy plus chemotherapy resulted in a 5 year survival rate of 10 percent and chemotherapy alone in a 5 year survival rate of 8 percent. Complete surgical resection is an important part of the management of retroperitoneal sarcomas and, with modern techniques of exposure, should be possible in the majority of patients.