OBJECTIVETo evaluate prognostic factors predicting postoperative period for patients with primary retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma.

METHODSThe clinical data and prognosis of 35 patients with primary retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma between August 2002 and June 2011 were retrospectively reviewed and analyzed.

RESULTSThe resectability rate of primary tumors was 91.4% (32/35) , and 71.4% (25/35) of the patients underwent complete resection. The 21 patients (84.0%) who got a complete resection of the primary tumor got tumor recurrence and died of tumor recurrence eventually. The overall 1-, 3-, 5-year survival rate were 82.9%, 54.3% and 31.4% and the median survival was 36 months. In the analysis of factors influencing postoperative survival, factors associated with postoperative survive were modus operandi of the tumor resection (χ(2) = 16.871, P = 0.000), tumor size (χ(2) = 5.548, P = 0.019) and tumor grade (χ(2) = 8.080, P = 0.014); the difference between age (χ(2) = 0.073, P = 0.787), gender (χ(2) = 2.181, P = 0.140) and adjuvant therapy (χ(2) = 1.344, P = 0.511) got no statistical significance.

CONCLUSIONSThe efficiency of adjuvant therapy for primary retroperitoneal leiomyosarcoma is not clear, complete resection remains the mainstream for primary leiomyosarcoma. Incomplete resection, large tumor (tumor diameter ≥ 10 cm) and high grade tumor predict shorter postoperative survival period.