Operative management of soft tissue sarcomas: impact of anatomic site.

Operative management of soft tissue sarcomas begins with the surgical biopsy. Incisional biopsy of an undiagnosed soft tissue mass allows optimal later definitive resection, this resection including the entire biopsy wound, as well as accomplishing an "adequate" margin around the sarcoma. The principles employed for this resection are those that lead to adequate gross and microscopic margins of normal tissue around the sarcoma while considering the limitations, in terms of physical disability, from the procedure itself. This operative strategy is described for various anatomic locations, such as the extremities, trunk, retroperitoneum, and head and neck; special problems with each of these primary sites are discussed.