En bloc resection of primary malignant bone tumors of the cervical spine.
BACKGROUND
Due to the poor response of primary malignant bone tumors to adjuvant therapies, surgical resection performed in an en bloc fashion with free margins remains the best option for long-term recurrence-free survival of patients harboring such lesions.


METHODS
In this article the authors provide a stepwise review of the technical details involved in the performance of en bloc resections of tumoral lesions in the cervical spine.


CONCLUSIONS
Due to the anatomical peculiarities of the cervical spine related to the presence of functional nerve roots as well as the vertebral arteries, en bloc resections in this region remains a challenging surgical procedure.
Department of Neurosurgery, Brain & Spine Institute - InvisionHealth, 400 International Dr., Buffalo, OH, 14221, USA, tobias.mattei@osumc.edu.
Tobias A
TA
Mattei
Ehud
E
Mendel
D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery*; D002813:Chondrosarcoma / Q000601:surgery*; D002817:Chordoma / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000379:methods*; D059351:Organ Sparing Treatments / Q000379:methods; D013125:Spinal Neoplasms / Q000601:surgery*; D013126:Spinal Nerve Roots; D014711:Vertebral Artery