Giant Cell Tumor of Bone in the Foot and Ankle

Giant cell tumor of bone has been shown to behave more aggressively when located in the wrist and hand. Although nearly 4% of giant cell tumors arise in the foot and ankle, biological features specific to this location have not been identified. In our experience with more than 300 cases of giant cell tumor, 12 arose in the foot and ankle and were followed for more than 2 years. These included nine females and three males ranging in age from 15 to 52 years (mean age, 29.5 years). All patients presented with pain of 5.0 months’ mean duration and 9 of 12 tumors demonstrated aggressive radiographic features, including bone erosion and destruction; five had either invasion of a joint or a soft tissue mass present. Unlike the hand, where metacarpal and phalangeal lesions are common, no tumors arose in the forefoot and nine of the tumors were present in the ankle region. Four patients were treated with resection (no recurrence), two with curettage and cement packing (one recurrence), and six with curettage and autologous bone graft (two recurrences), which resulted in an overall recurrence rate of 25%. None of the recurrent tumors have returned after additional treatment, which consisted of curettage and cement packing in two cases and resection in one case. Five tumors (four primary, one recurrent) were treated with local resection and reconstruction with no major complications and with no amputations performed. Thus, giant cell tumors of the foot and ankle can be treated with local procedures, which result in recurrence rates similar to those found in more common locations.