[Post-operative intra-arterial chemotherapy for high grade malignant musculoskeletal sarcoma]

Twenty-nine patients with high grade malignant musculoskeletal sarcoma were treated with chemotherapy. Intra-arterial chemotherapy was performed post-operatively for patients with local recurrence, patients with poor response to pre-operative chemotherapy or patients with intra-lesional or marginal surgical margin. The local recurrence rate in patients with intra-arterial chemotherapy (8.8%) was lower than in those with intravenous chemotherapy (37.5%). Patients with post-operative intra-arterial chemotherapy showed no local recurrence. Of the 29 patients except stage 3 with intra-arterial chemotherapy, the metastatic rate in patients with intra-arterial chemotherapy (41.4%) was lower than in chemotherapy patients with intravenous chemotherapy (83.3%). The rate in the post-operative group (28.6%) was lower than in the pre-operative group (42.9%) or pre- and post-operative group (50.0%). The ten-year survival curve of patients given intra-arterial chemotherapy (51.0%) was higher than in patients on intravenous chemotherapy (17.9%). Among the 34 patients who underwent intra-arterial chemotherapy, the survival rate in the other pre- and post-operative groups and the post-operative group (55.6%) was higher than in the pre-operative group and pre- and post-operative group (49.8%).