Diagnostic, survival, and tumor control outcomes of parapharyngeal space liposarcoma: a systematic review

Parapharyngeal space liposarcomas (PPS-LS) are rare tumors often associated with a moderate-to-poor prognosis. This study aims to assess tumor control and survival outcomes across the various subtypes of PPS-LS. We conducted a systematic review of cases using PubMed, OVID, Scopus, Web of Science, ScienceDirect, and EBSCO from inception to October 2024. Given the data on individual patient follow-up, Kaplan–Meier survival analysis was utilized to calculate disease-free survival (DFS) and disease-specific survival (DSS). Out of 303 articles, 10 studies with 11 patients (72.7% male) met the inclusion criteria, with a mean age of 51.3 years (range: 12–77.5). Preoperative fine needle aspiration cytology was conducted in 45.4%, with 80% yielding inconclusive results. The 2-year and 5-year DFS rates for PPS-LS were 64% and 50%, respectively, while the 2-year DSS rate was 84%. Tumor recurrence occurred in 36.3% of patients, with an average of 2.5 recurrences per patient, specifically the myxoid subtype of PPS-LS. This systematic review highlights the varied prognostic outcomes of PPS-LS and its subtypes, emphasizing the need for vigilant surveillance to improve DFS and reduce recurrence rates. This provides surgeons with critical insights into probable prognostic outcomes when dealing with specific subtypes of PPS-LS.