Pelvic Ewing's sarcoma. Advances in treatment

In a study of eighteen patients with pelvic Ewing's sarcoma who were treated with a multidisciplinary approach, chemotherapy was effective in controlling systemic spread of the tumor. Surgery coupled with improved methods of chemotherapy provided results that were statistically superior to those obtained with radiation and chemotherapy alone in control of the local pelvic lesion. A twofold increase in the survival rate was seen at a median follow-up of thirty-six months in the patients who had the resection. Our results suggest that pelvic Ewing's sarcoma is best treated by initial chemotherapy, followed by local wide marginal resection of the pelvic lesion coupled with perimeter radiation therapy and concluded with additional chemotherapy. Survival rates of patients with pelvic Ewing's sarcoma may then approach the excellent survival rates of patients with lesions in more favorable anatomical locations.