Treatment strategies for well-differentiated liposarcomas and therapeutic outcomes.

[well-differentiated liposarcoma]

This study examined 45 patients with well-differentiated liposarcoma who were surgically treated at our hospital (initial surgery in 41 patients and reoperation in 4 ). Only one patient had recurrence among patients who underwent initial surgery , and the recurrence was localised in the retroperitoneal space . For patients who underwent reoperation , the mean time between the initial surgery and the recurrence was 16 .5 years . None of the 45 patients developed distant metastasis . It is important to preserve not only neurovascular bundles but also lower limb muscles in order to maintain ambulatory ability in the elderly patients . For well-differentiated liposarcomas of the limbs , it is important to establish a surgical margin beyond the marginal resection border and to perform muscle resection to the extent that would not greatly reduce the muscle strength .