Long-term clinical outcome in patients with high-grade soft tissue sarcoma who were treated with surgical adjuvant therapy using acridine orange after intra-lesional or marginal resection.
We investigated the long-term clinical efficacy of acridine orange (AO) therapy on the inhibition of local recurrence after marginal or intra-lesional tumor resection in high-grade soft tissue sarcomas (STSs). Our study consisted of 48 patients with STSs who received AO therapy after marginal or intra-lesional resection. The median and mean follow-up durations were 76 and 78 months, respectively. Our AO therapy procedure was combined with photodynamic surgery, photodynamic therapy, and radiodynamic therapy. There were 25 men and 23 women, with a mean age of 46 years. The average tumor size at surgery was 8.5 cm. At the last follow-up, 11 patients developed local recurrence. The 5- and 10-year local recurrence-free rates were 78.9% and 73.3%, respectively. In multivariate analysis, tumor size remained significant for local control. None of the patients developed systemic or local complications. All patients recovered activities of daily life before AO therapy. AO therapy can be performed in safety and may be a useful therapy for acquiring long-term local control in patients with high-grade STSs. Tumor size is an important factor for the indication of AO therapy.