[Treatment of five cases of bladder sarcoma]

Five cases of bladder sarcoma were treated at our Department between January, 1972 and December, 1981. These cases accounted for only 1.5% of the bladder tumors (335 cases) diagnosed during the same period. The patients ranged from 11 months to 67 years old. There were 2 males and 3 females. Rhabdomyosarcoma was seen in 2 cases, leiomyosarcoma in 2 cases and spindle cell sarcoma in 1 case. Treatment consisted of total cystectomy and urinary diversion followed by chemotherapy or radiotherapy in 3 cases and partial cystectomy followed by chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy in 2 cases. Two patients died during adjuvant chemotherapy. One patient, an 11-month-old boy died of septicemia facilitated by bone marrow suppression 1 month postoperatively. The other patient died of gastrointestinal bleeding 2 months postoperatively. Another case died of local recurrence at 1 year postoperatively. One woman has been free of disease for 5 1/2 years and the remaining case was lost to follow up. Aggressive multidisciplinary treatment consisting of surgery, radiotherapy and cyclic combination chemotherapy is discussed, and 203 cases of bladder sarcoma reported in the Japanese literature are reviewed.