Clinical study of 3D printed personalized prosthesis in the treatment of bone defect after pelvic tumor resection

BACKGROUND: /Objective: In recent years, prostheses have been widely used for limb reconstruction after pelvic tumour resection. However, prostheses are associated with problems leading to tumour recurrence, poor implant matching, defects after tumour resection, and easy implant looseness or failure. To achieve a precise preoperative design, complete tumour resection, and better anatomical structure matching and prosthesis stability, this study used three-dimensionally (3D)-printed osteotomy guides and personalised prostheses for reconstruction after pelvic tumour resection. This study aimed to explore the early clinical efficacy of 3D printed personalised prostheses for the reconstruction of bone defects after pelvic tumour resection. METHODS: A total of 20 patients (12 males, 8 females) with pelvic tumours surgically treated at our hospital between October 2014 and October 2019 were selected. There were 10 cases each of giant cell bone tumours and osteochondrosarcomas. According to Enneking zoning, there were 11 and 9 cases with tumours located in zones I and II, respectively. All cases were equally divided into conventional and 3D printing groups. For repair and reconstruction, a nail rod system or a steel plate was used in the conventional group while individualised 3D-printed prostheses were used in the 3D printing group. The surgical incision, duration of surgery, intraoperative blood loss, and the negative rate of resection margins in postoperative tumour specimens were examined. The follow-up focused on tumour recurrence, complications, and the Musculoskeletal Tumor Society (MSTS) score. RESULTS: All cases were followed-up for 6–24 months. The average incision length, duration of surgery, amount of intraoperative blood loss, and MSTS score of the 3D printing group were 10.0 ± 3.1 cm, 115.2 ± 25.3 min, 213.2 ± 104.6 mL, 23.8 ± 1.3, respectively, and those of the conventional group were 19.8 ± 8.4 cm, 156.8 ± 61.4 min, 361.4 ± 164.2 mL, and 18.3 ± 1.4, respectively. Histological tumour specimen examination showed nine and three cases with negative resection margins in the 3D printing group and the conventional group, respectively. The abovementioned indicators were significantly different between both groups (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Applying 3D printed surgical guides and personalised prostheses for pelvic tumour resection, repair, and reconstruction, as well as preoperative planning and design, enables more accurate tumour resections and better prosthesis-patient matchings, possibly reducing surgical trauma, shortening the duration of surgery, and promoting the functional recovery of patients postoperatively. THE TRANSLATION POTENTIAL OF THIS ARTICLE: Contrary to existing studies on 3D printed personalised prostheses, this study reports the clinical efficacy of the aforementioned technology in treating bone defects in a series of patients who underwent pelvic tumour resection. Moreover, it presents a comprehensive comparison of this technology with conventional procedures, thus strengthening its importance in treatment regimens for reconstructing bone defects.