Margin Assessment in Soft Tissue Sarcomas: Review of the Literature

SIMPLE SUMMARY: Many classifications to assess margins status for soft tissue sarcomas are reported in the literature. Most of the series are heterogeneous and variable in size, making it difficult to compare results from study to study. Thus, which is the best way to assess margins in order to predict the risk of local recurrence is still debated. The aim of this narrative review is to provide a comprehensive assessment of the literature on margins, and to highlight the need for a uniform description of the margin status for patients with soft tissue sarcomas (STS). ABSTRACT: Adequacy of margins must take into consideration both the resection margin width (quantity) and anatomic barrier (quality). There are several classification schemes for reporting surgical resection margin status for soft tissue sarcomas (STS). Most of the studies regarding treatment outcomes in STS included all histologic grades and histological subtypes, which include infiltrative and non-infiltrative subtypes and are very heterogeneous in terms of both histologic characteristics and treatment modalities (adjuvant treatments or not). This lack of consistency makes it difficult to compare results from study to study. Therefore, there is a great need for evidence-based standardization concerning the width of resection margins. The aim of this narrative review is to provide a comprehensive assessment of the literature on margins, and to highlight the need for a uniform description of the margin status for patients with STS. Patient cases should be discussed at multidisciplinary tumor boards and treatments should be individualized to clinical and demographic characteristics, which must include also a deep knowledge of specific histotypes behaviors, particularly infiltrative ones.