Osteosarcoma: improvement in survival limited to high-grade patients only.
BACKGROUND
We sought to identify the significant prognostic parameters of patients with osteosarcoma over the past three decades using a population-based registry.


METHODS
A total of 3765 patients with osteosarcoma were identified in the SEER database. Information regarding patient demographics, clinical and treatment characteristics, cause of death and survival were extracted. Kaplan-Meier, Log-Rank, and Cox regression were used for analysis.


RESULTS
On multivariate analysis only age group '<25 years', 'local' stage and 'low' grade, 'appendicular skeleton' and employment of 'surgical resection' showed a disease-specific survival benefit with a P value < 0.001. The long-term survival improved in the interval from 1973 to 1985 from approximately 55 to 65% but subsequent improvement has been limited only to patients with high-grade disease.


CONCLUSIONS
When comparing survival rates by decade of diagnosis, it appears that improvement in survival since 1985 is limited to patients with high-grade disease only.


METHODS
The level of evidence for this article is 2.
Jawad
Muhammad Umar
MU
Department of Orthopaedics, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, University of Miami Hospital, 4th Floor, 1400 NW, 12th Avenue, Miami, FL 33136, USA.
Cheung
Michael C
MC
Clarke
Jennifer
J
Koniaris
Leonidas G
LG
Scully
Sean P
SP
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001859:Bone Neoplasms / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012516:Osteosarcoma / Q000401:mortality* / Q000473:pathology; D018426:SEER Program