Osteosarcoma of Cervical Spine: Report of a Case Treated with Hadrontherapy

• Leonello Tacconi

  Neurosurgical Unit, Azienda Universitaria Integrata, Trieste, Italy

• Gennaro D’acunzi

  Neurosurgical Unit, ASL Salerno, Italy

• Raffaele Fristachi

  UOC Anatomia Patologica, ASL Salerno, Italy

• Filippo Aquila

  Neurosurgical Unit, Azienda Universitaria Integrata, Trieste, Italy

Sarcomas are rare tumours that commonly derive from neoplastic transformation of mesenchymal tissues. Only a small percentage of these malignancies are located in the spine. The gold standard of treatment is a multidisciplinary approach with the surgery being the most important tool. An en-bloc resection with free margins followed by radiotherapy seems to assure the best overall survival. Among the newest treatment modalities, certainly, the adrontherapy is the most interesting and promising kind of radiotherapy that uses the physical bullet properties (Bragg peak) of protons such as carbon ions to treat lesions. We present a case of a gentleman with a C2-C3 low grade osteosarcoma treated, after a biopsy tissue sample, with hadrontherapy alone. At 6 years follow up the tumour seems to be well under control.

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