Clinicopathological features and survival disparities between axial and appendicular skeletal Angiosarcoma: A...

Primary angiosarcoma of bone (ASB) is a rare and aggressive primary bone tumor. The prognostic significance of anatomical location (axial vs. appendicular skeleton) remains poorly defined. This study aimed to compare clinicopathological features and survival outcomes between these two groups.

Patients diagnosed with primary ASB (1975-2019) were identified from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Tumors were categorized as axial (spine, pelvis, ribs, skull) or appendicular (extremities). Overall survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier and Cox models. Cancer-specific mortality (CSM) was evaluated with Fine-Gray competing risk regression to calculate subdistribution hazard ratios (SHR).

Among 458 patients, 162 (35.4%) had axial and 296 (64.6%) had appendicular tumors. Axial patients were older (median 63 vs. 46 years, p < 0.001), had higher distant metastasis at diagnosis (43.2% vs. 29.1%, p = 0.002), and underwent surgery less frequently (37.0% vs. 81.1%, p < 0.001). The 5-year overall survival was significantly worse for axial tumors (16.8% vs. 38.2%, p < 0.001). The 5-year cumulative incidence of CSM was 69.5% for axial versus 50.8% for appendicular tumors (p < 0.001). Multivariate analysis confirmed axial location as an independent predictor of higher CSM (SHR 1.62, 95% CI: 1.25-2.10, p < 0.001) , independent of the year of diagnosis.

Axial tumors represent a distinct high-risk subgroup characterized by limited surgical resectability and inferior survival. Anatomical location should be considered a critical stratification factor in clinical management and future trials.Abbreviations: ASB, Primary angiosarcoma of the bone; SEER, Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results; OS, Overall Survival; CSS, Cancer-Specific Survival; CSD, Cancer-Specific Death; CIF, Cumulative Incidence Function; SHR, Subdistribution Hazard Ratio; CI, Confidence Interval; HR, Hazard Ratio.