Prognostic factors of primary intrascrotal rhabdomyosarcoma in children: a population-based study

Purpose Primary intrascrotal rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a rare and aggressive tumor. The purpose of this study was to investigate the prognostic factors of intrascrotal RMS in children. Methods All pediatric patients with intrascrotal RMS diagnosed between 2000 and 2018 were identified using the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. To compare survival curves, the log-rank test was employed. A multivariate Cox proportional hazards model was developed to investigate the effect of each factor on overall survival (OS). A nomogram was created using the outcomes of the Cox regression model. Results A total of 102 pediatric patients with intrascrotal RMS were identified. Overall survival rates for all patients were 90.6% at 3-year and 87.2% at 5-year, respectively. Survival rates differed significantly by SEER stage and surgery; however, chemotherapy and removal of lymph nodes showed no significant difference. The outcome of Cox proportional hazard regression revealed that SEER stage and surgery were important independent predictors in this model. Furthermore, we developed a nomogram for predicting OS in pediatric intrascrotal RMS based on the Cox regression model. The risk of death increased with stage in patients. Additionally, patients who underwent surgery had a lower mortality risk than those who did not. Conclusions Our findings show that SEER stage and surgery are the most important indicators of OS in children with intrascrotal RMS, providing critical epidemiological information for clinical therapy.