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Published on: July 28, 2020
Reliability of Margin Assessment after Surgery for Extremity Soft Tissue Sarcoma: The SSG Experience
Clement S Trovik1, Sigmund Skjeldal, Henrik Bauer
1Musculoskeletal Tumour Center, Department of Orthopedics/Oncology, Haukeland University Hospital, 5021 Bergen, Norway.
Sarcoma
|July 5, 2012
Summary
Surgical margin assessment reliability in soft tissue sarcoma (STS) treatment was evaluated. Findings show acceptable agreement among institutions, supporting the use of the Scandinavian Sarcoma Group (SSG) Register for local control studies.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Surgical Pathology
- Clinical Research
Background:
- Soft tissue sarcoma (STS) treatment primarily relies on surgery, with adjuvant radiotherapy use increasing.
- The Scandinavian Sarcoma Group (SSG) Register has collected patient and treatment data since 1987.
- New radiotherapy guidelines in 1998 prompted an evaluation of surgical margin assessment reliability.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the reliability of surgical margin assessments across Scandinavian institutions.
- To validate the use of the SSG Register for future studies on STS local control.
Main Methods:
- A panel of sarcoma surgeons reevaluated pathology and surgical reports.
- 117 patients were randomly selected from 470 recorded between 1998-2003.
- Original margin classifications were compared with the panel's reevaluation.
Main Results:
- The panel agreed with the original margin classification in 80% of cases.
- Disagreements were most common when distinguishing between marginal and wide margins.
- The inherent judgment in margin assessment was considered acceptable.
Conclusions:
- Surgical margin assessment reliability is acceptable for utilizing the SSG Register in STS studies.
- The SSG Register remains a valuable resource for investigating local control in soft tissue sarcoma.
