Metastatic carcinoma of the spine. A study of 92 cases.
In a retrospective study of 172 patients with disseminated carcinoma in the skeleton, 54% were shown by radiography and scintigraphy to have vertebral metastases. Breast carcinoma was the most common primary tumour, occurring in 30% of the patients, followed by lung (17%), prostate (10%) and kidney (9%). The lumbar spine was most often involved and some primary carcinomas showed a predilection for particular spinal segments. Cord compression occurred in 30% of the patients with vertebral spread and was a poor prognostic sign for long-term survival. Hypernephroma was the most common tumour to cause spinal cord involvement. The thoracic segment was the most frequent site of cord compression (43%), and pathological fracture-dislocation was the most common cause (50%).
Department of Orthopaedics, University of Zürich, Switzerland.
M
M
Nottebaert
A R
AR
von Hochstetter
G U
GU
Exner
A
A
Schreiber
D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013117:Spinal Cord Compression / Q000209:etiology; D013125:Spinal Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000556:secondary*