Survival rate and neurological outcome after operation for advanced spinal metastasis (Tomita's classification > or = type 4).
OBJECTIVE
We investigated whether primary malignancy entities and the extent of tumor resection have an effect on the survival rate and neurological improvement in patients with spinal metastases that extend beyond the vertebral compartment (Tomita's classification > or = type 4).


METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed 87 patients with advanced spinal metastasis who underwent surgery. They were divided into groups 1 and 2 according to whether they responded to adjuvant therapy or not, respectively. They were subdivided according to the extent of tumor resection: group 1, gross total resection (G1GT); group 1, subtotal resection (G1ST); group 2, gross total resection (G2GT); and group 2, subtotal resection (G2ST). The origin of the tumor, survival rate, extent of resection, and neurological improvement were analyzed.


RESULTS
Group 1 had a better survival rate than group 2. The G1GT subgroup showed a better prognosis than the G1ST subgroup. In group 2, the extent of tumor resection (G2GT vs. G2ST) did not affect survival rate. In all subgroups, neurological status improved one month after surgery, however, the G2ST subgroup had worsened at the last follow-up. There was no local recurrence at the last follow-up in the G1GT subgroup. Four out of 13 patients in the G2GT subgroup showed a local recurrence of spinal tumors and progressive worsening of neurological status.


CONCLUSIONS
In patients with spinal metastases (Tomita's classification > or = type 4), individuals who underwent gross total resection of tumors that responded to adjuvant therapy showed a higher survival rate than those who underwent subtotal resection. For tumors not responding to adjuvant therapy, we suggest palliative surgical decompression.
Kwon
Young Min
YM
Department of Neurosurgery, Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Gangnam Severance Spine Hospital, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Kim
Keun Su
KS
Kuh
Sung Uk
SU
Chin
Dong Kyu
DK
Jin
Byung Ho
BH
Cho
Yong Eun
YE
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003943:Diagnostic Techniques, Neurological; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009364:Neoplasm Recurrence, Local; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013125:Spinal Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality / Q000556:secondary* / Q000601:surgery; D015996:Survival Rate