Comparing Pediatric and Adult Primary Chest Wall Tumors.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate the differences in surgical interventions and outcomes for primary chest wall tumors in pediatric and adult patient groups. Materials and Methods: We reviewed records of patients operated on for primary chest wall tumors from January 2005 to June 2019. Patients aged 18 and younger were classified as pediatric (group I), while those above 18 were considered adults (group II). We analyzed demographic characteristics, histopathologic diagnosis, number of resected ribs, prosthetics requirements, complications, chemotherapy and radiotherapy applications, and related complications. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to analyze patient survival times, and the log-rank test was employed for comparing survival times between groups. Results: Of the 71 patients who underwent operations for primary chest wall tumors in our clinic between January 2005 and June 2019, 20 were pediatric (28.2%) and 51 were adults (71.8%). The 5-year overall survival rates for pediatric and adult patients were 72.9% and 68.8%, respectively (p=0.683), while the 5-year disease-free survival rates were 76.0% and 69.0%, respectively, showing no significant differences (p=0.709). Conclusion: Our findings indicate no significant differences between pediatric and adult primary chest wall tumors regarding disease-free survival times, overall survival rates, and surgical complications.