LAUSR

Spine tumors encompass a wide range of pathologies with a commensurately broad spectrum of available treatments, ranging from radiation for spinal metastases to highly-invasive, en bloc resection for primary vertebral column malignancies. This high variability in treatment approaches stems both from variability in the goals of surgery e.g., oncologic cure versus symptom palliation, and from the significant advancements in surgical technologies that have been made over the past two decades. Among these advancements are improvements in surgical technique, namely minimally invasive approaches, increased availability of focused radiation modalities (e.g., proton therapy, linear accelerator devices), and new surgical technologies, such as carbon fiber-reinforced polyetheretherketone rods. Additionally, several groups have described non-surgical interventions, such as vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty for spinal instability secondary to pathologic fracture, and lesion ablation with spinal laser interstitial thermoablation, radiofrequency ablation, or cryoablation. Here we provide an overview of the latest technological advancements in the field of spinal oncology and their potential utility for the modern spinal oncologist.