Abstract
Prognostication is an important part of treatment decision-making for patients with metastatic spinal tumors. In this study, we analyzed retrospectively the relationship between outcome in 56 patients (29 males and 27 females) with metastatic spinal tumors treated at our hospital and their expected prognoses in terms of prognostication scores (Tokuhashi score and Katagiri score). Twenty patients underwent palliative surgery including decompression or fusion with instrumentation. Forty-three and 36 patients received radiotherapy and chemotherapy, respectively. All patients with a Tokuhashi score of more than 12 points (predicted life expectancy>12 months) survived for more than 12 months after initial diagnosis. Meanwhile, 20 of 33 patients with a Tokuhashi score of less than 8 points (predicted life expectancy<6 months) survived for more than 12 months, contrary to expectation. These cases included patients with lung and renal cancer who achieved remission with gefitinib and sunitinib malate. Recently, as newly developed anticancer drugs have improved the long-term survival of cancer patients, it is necessary to develop a new prognostication score that takes into account the effects of chemotherapy for those with metastatic spinal tumors.
