Review confirms outstanding outcomes for Oxford’s spinal sarcoma patients

Cancer recurrence rates for patients of the Oxford University Hospitals’ Spinal Sarcoma team are amongst the lowest in the world, according to a recently published review of the service.

The review showed that rigorous surgical techniques, combined with specialist-led planning and multidisciplinary collaboration, result in excellent long-term outcomes.

Spinal sarcoma is a rare and complex type of cancer that develops in the bones or soft tissues of the spine. The Oxford Spinal Sarcoma Service is one of just four designated primary spinal tumour centres in England, serving a population of more than 10 million people.

The service review, published in the European Spine Journal, analysed patient outcomes from the team’s more centralised, multidisciplinary model of primary spinal tumour care between its establishment in 2008 and 2022.

The review found that in patients with tumours in the mobile spine – that is, between the neck and pelvis – where the entirety of the tumour was cut out with some healthy surrounding tissue, known as an Enneking Appropriate (EA) resection, there was just a two percent recurrence rate in the five years after surgery. This kind of EA resection was achieved in 90 percent of cases.

For tumours in the sacrum, at the base of the spine, where surgery is more challenging, 82 percent of patients did not experience recurrence after five years.

OUH Consultant Spinal Surgeon Jeremy Reynolds, who leads the Spinal Sarcoma Service and was lead author on the paper, said: “The findings of our research confirm that outcomes for our patients are comparable to any of the leading centres in the world.

“Our collaborative, multidisciplinary approach – in Oxford and with colleagues across the country – allied with more rigorous surgical techniques mean that our patients can now expect a much great chance of survival after surgery.”

Before the team adopted the EA resection approach around 2011, recurrence rates in spinal sarcoma patients following surgery were very high, and many tumours were considered inoperable.

Gerard Mawhinney, Consultant Nurse in the Spinal Sarcoma team and co-author on the paper, said: “Our care is focused on the whole patient, from supporting them through surgery to leading research that improves quality of life. These outcomes aren’t just numbers, they represent real people living longer, fuller lives, and that’s what drives us every day. I’m proud of the progress we’ve made in improving quality of life and extending life expectancy.”

The Oxford team plays a leading role in the UK National Spine Sarcoma Multidisciplinary Team, a world-first platform where surgical teams from across the UK collaborate to review and manage complex cases. This national collaboration, currently chaired by Mr Reynolds, helps ensure that all patients receive expert-led care, regardless of location.

“Instead of competing, we now work together. It’s the only national platform in the world where the majority of complex cases receive national-level input,” said Reynolds, who is also the chair-elect of the AO Spine Tumour Research Group, the world’s largest spinal tumour research body.