Aggressive surgical management of spinal metastatic disease can provide improvement of neurological function and significant pain relief. However, there is limited literature analyzing such management as is pertains to individual histopathology of the primary tumor, which may be linked to overall prognosis for the patient. In this study, clinical outcomes were reviewed for patients undergoing spinal surgery for metastatic breast cancer. Respective review was done to identify all patients with breast cancer over an eight-year period at a major cancer center and then to select those with symptomatic spinal metastatic disease who underwent spinal surgery. Pre-and postoperative pain levels (visual analog scale [VAS]), analgesic medication usage, and modifed Frankel grade scores were compared on all patients who underwent surgery. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess risks for complications. A total of 16,977 patients were diagnosed with breast cancer, and 479 patients (2.8%) were diagnosed with spinal metastases from breast cancer. Of these patients, 87 patients (18%) underwent 125 spinal surgeries. Of the 76 patients (87%) who were ambulatory preoperatively, the majority (98%) were still ambulatory.Of the 11 patients (13%) who were nonambulatory preoperatively, four patients were alive at 3 months postoperatively, three of which (75%) regained ambulation. The preoperative median VAS of six was significantly reduced to a median score of two at the time of discharge and at 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively (P < 0.001 for all time points). A total of 39% of patients experienced complications; 87% were early (within 30 days of surgery), and 13% were late. Early major surgical complications were significantly greater when five or more levels were instrumented. In patients with spinal metastases specifically from breast cancer, aggressive surgical management provides significant pain relief and preservation or improvement of neurological function with an acceptably low rate of complications.

The histology of the primary tumor in metastatic spine disease plays an important role in its treatment and prognosis. However, there is paucity in the literature of histology-specific analysis of spinal metastases. In this study, prognostic variables were reviewed for patients who underwent surgery for breast metastases to the spinal column. Respective chart review was done to first identify all patients with breast cancer over an 8-year period at a major cancer center and then to select all those with symptomatic metastatic disease to the spine who underwent spinal surgery. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to assess several prognostic variables. Presence of visceral metastases, multiplicity of bony lesions, presence of estrogen receptors (ER), and segment of spine (cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral) in which metastases arose were compared with patient survival. Eighty-seven patients underwent 125 spinal surgeries. Those with estrogen receptor (ER) positivity had a longer median survival after surgery compared to those with estrogen receptor negativity. Patients with cervical location of metastasis had a shorter median survival compared with those having metastases in other areas of the spine. The presence of visceral metastases or a multiplicity of bony lesions did not have prognostic value. In patients with spinal metastases from breast cancer, aggressive surgical management may be an option for providing significant pain relief and preservation/improvement of neurological function. Interestingly, in patients undergoing such surgery, cervical location of metastasis is a negative prognostic variable, and ER-positivity is associated with better survival, while presence of visceral or multiple bony lesions does not significantly alter survival.

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The results indicate that patients harboring a GBM that contains a large cyst survive longer and have a longer time to recurrence than those who lack such a cyst. This is the first such observation in the literature.