Complete remission of metastatic osteosarcoma using combined modality therapy: a retrospective analysis of unselected patients in China

BACKGROUND: Complete surgical remission (CSR) is the best predictor of overall survival (OS) for patients with metastatic osteosarcoma. However, metastasectomy has not been widely implemented in China in the last decade due to various factors, and instead, most physicians choose hypofractionated radiotherapy to treat pulmonary lesions. This study aimed to retrospectively evaluate the outcomes of different local treatments for pulmonary lesions and identify the best local therapy strategies for these patients. METHODS: We reviewed the clinical courses of osteosarcoma patients with pulmonary metastases who were initially treated in two sarcoma centres in Beijing, China, from June 1st, 2009, to March 26th, 2020. With a median follow-up of 32.4 (95% confidence interval (CI): 30.8, 36.1) months, a total of 127 patients with 605 pulmonary nodules, all of whom had received local therapy and firstly achieved CSR or complete radiated/metabolic remission (CRR), were included in the analysis. A total of 102 patients with 525 nodules were initially diagnosed with resectable lung metastases, while 25 patients had 80 indeterminate nodules at presentation and relapsed with pulmonary metastases within 6 months after the completion of adjuvant chemotherapy. RESULTS: Eighty-eight of 127 (69.3%) patients had fewer than 5 nodules at the time of local therapy, with 48 of 127 (37.8%) located in the unilateral pleura. No patient underwent thoracotomy, and 42 of 127 patients (85 nodules) received video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS). In addition, 79 of 127 patients (520 nodules) received hypofractionated stereotactic body radiotherapy (RT), such as Gamma Knife radiosurgery or CyberKnife radiosurgery. The twelve-month event-free survival (EFS) (from local therapy to progression) rate of this entire study cohort was 35.6% (95% CI: 26.8, 44.4%), without a significant difference between the two groups (44.7% for VATS vs. 28.4% for RT, P = 0.755). Radiation-induced pneumonitis was observed in 62 of 86 (72.1%) patients, with one patient (1/86, 1.2%) in grade 4. CONCLUSIONS: Our past data showed a similar prognosis with the use of hypofractionated radiotherapy and VATS for the treatment of pulmonary metastasis and no inferiority to thoracotomy regarding historical outcomes. Currently, high-resolution chest computed tomography (CT) provides sufficient information on nodules, and less invasive modalities can thus be considered for treatment. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-021-08071-5.