Tumors and tumor-like lesions of the foot and ankle - a retrospective analysis of 22 years

Musculoskeletal tumors are rare, with approximately 1% of all malignancies. Only 4% are localized at the foot and ankle. Because of this fact, tumors are often overlooked or even misdiagnosed. During a period of 22 years, 75 tumors (from a total of 1452) were localized at the foot and ankle. Retrospectively, we analyzed the anatomic location of the tumors, the patient's age at the date of diagnosis, and the therapy. Eighteen of 75 tumor cases were malignant, seven cases were with a malignant bone tumor, and 11 cases were with a malignant soft tissue tumor. The most important precondition is a faithful implementation of diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines when treating musculoskeletal tumors. Primary malignant tumors require a wide or radical surgical resection. Whether limb-keeping or ablative procedures should be used also depends on the anatomic location of the tumor, the expectations of the patient, and the functional demands of patients.