Free vascularised tissue transfer and brachytherapy for soft-tissue sarcomas of the extremities.

We reviewed the medical files of nine patients with localised soft-tissue sarcomas of the extremities treated with surgical resection, free vascularised tissue transfer, and computerised after-loading iridium-192 high dose rate brachytherapy over a period of 8 years. All patients had external beam radiation therapy in fractions with a total dose of 48-52 Gy, followed by surgery at approximately 4-5 weeks post-irradiation. Surgical treatment included wide resection of the primary tumour in six patients, and marginal resection in three patients.