Osteosarcoma in the elderly over 60 years: a multicenter study by the Japanese Musculoskeletal Oncology Group

Few studies have described the characteristics and prognostic factors of osteosarcoma patients aged over 60 years.

The Japanese Musculoskeletal Oncology Group (JMOG) carried out a retrospective review of patients over the age of 60 years with osteosarcoma.

Only 12 patients had secondary osteosarcoma, with none associated with Paget's disease. The primary disease sites were the extremities in 63% and trunk in 33%. The overall survival was 42.8% and disease-free survival was 40.8% at 5 years in the high grade group. An univariate analysis indicated that significant poor prognostic factors for overall survival were axial location, lung metastasis at initial presentation, and absence of surgical treatment. Multivariate analysis revealed that a significant poor prognostic factor for overall survival was the absence of surgical treatment. Secondary osteosarcoma did not lower the overall or the disease-free survival in any group.

The current study indicates that the number of osteosarcoma patients over 60 years is increasing. The number of cases with secondary osteosarcoma over 60 years is relatively small in Japan, with no patients having osteosarcomas related to Paget's disease. Although there is a predilection for axial localization, surgical treatment has a significant impact on patient's prognosis.