neoadjuvant chemotherapy with ifosfamide, cisplatin, adriamycin and mitomycin (imap) for high risk adult soft tissue sarcomas

to define efficacy of pre-operative chemotherapy in down staging of advanced non-round cell soft tissue sarcomas. from sep 2002 to dec 2005, 70 patients were treated by ifosfamid, mesna, cisplatin, adriamycin, mitomycin and subsequent surgery. postoperatively, patients received radiotherapy in cases of microscopically incomplete resection or local recurrence. the median age of the patients was 34 years and the median tumor size was 14 cm. according to ajcc classification 46 patients had stage 3 and 24 had stage 4 diseases. the most common subtypes were mfh and leiomyosarcoma. the most common sites of tumors were lower extremity and trunk. toxicity grades three or higher consisted of nausea, leucopenia and infection. about 50% of the patients received g-csf. response to chemotherapy was assessable in 63 patients; 9 patients achieved complete response and 16 showed partial response. disease progressed in 8 and did not change in 37. the best response was seen with mfh, fibrosarcoma and synovial sarcoma. after chemotherapy seventy percent of patients underwent complete surgery. disease relapsed in 41 patients and twenty two patients died of metastasis. median survival of patients was 30 months. imap plus g-csf is safe and effective as preoperative chemotherapy in some subtypes of sarcomas, although the metastasis problem has not been eliminated