Surgical Management of Clavicular Malignancies With Resection of the Clavicle Without Reconstruction

Abstract

Clavicular malignancies are very rare, and few papers which reported that primary tumors are predominant, have been published about the functional and oncological outcomes after surgical treatment. The main purpose of the present study was to report the functional and oncological outcomes of 14 patients with clavicular malignancy, who were managed with total/partial claviculectomy without reconstruction, or followed up without surgical intervention. Of the total patients, 26.7% presented with clavicular cancer of unknown primary, and 42.9% with pathologic fractures of the clavicle. Claviculectomy without reconstruction was applied to 57.1% patients, as partial resection in 42.9% and total in 14.3%. The similarity of the clavicle to flat bones rather than long bones, that the surgical decision for partial or total resection of the clavicle because of malignancy is simpler to make than for other long bones because there is no requirement for reconstruction. Level of Evidence: Level IV.