Time interval between surgery and start of adjuvant radiotherapy in patients with soft tissue sarcoma: A retrospective analysis of 1131 cases from the French Sarcoma Group

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of the time interval (TI) between surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy (RT) in soft tissue sarcoma (STS). Methods and materials: Data from 1131 patients treated between 1990 and 2014 were retrospectively reviewed. Inclusion criteria were: limb or superficial trunk wall STS (RO or R1 resection) and adjuvant RT. The impact of TI on 10-year local relapse-free survival (LRFS) and 10-year overall survival (OS) was analyzed using a Log-rank test and then Cox Model. Results: The median TI was 82 days (range, 18-346). With a median follow-up of 235 months (range, 2-296 months), the 10-year LRFS was 57.5% (+/- 2%) and the 10-year OS was 64.2% (+/- 2%). With a TI of 19-39 days, 40-79 days, 80-119 days, and >= 120 days, 10-year LRFSs were 653%, 55.5%, 56.9% and 61.2% (p = 0.465), and 10-year OSs were 72.8%, 60.7%, 66.4% and 62.1% (p = 0.347), respectively. After adjustment for the factors significantly (p <= 0.05) associated with LRFS and OS, TI did not alter LRFS (p = 0.182) either OS (p = 0.335). Conclusions: In this retrospective STS database study, the TI between surgery and start of adjuvant RT did not seem to affect outcomes. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.