Abstract

We previously reported early favourable results concerning allograft use in proximal humerus reconstruction following malignancy. We now present the long-term follow-up of patients who underwent tumour resection with massive humeral allograft reconstruction. This is a retrospective review of 8 consecutive patients who underwent massive proximal humeral allograft for primary or secondary bone tumours. The median age at first surgery was 41 years ; the median followup is 11.1 years. The overall revision rate of the allografts was 75%. A total of 10 revision procedures were required in this cohort. Five-year survival for implants was 44% ; at ten years no implants were intact. Five-year survival for patients was 88% ; it was 60% at ten years. In our experience, proximal humerus allograft reconstruction was associated with a high complication rate and resulted in multiple revision procedures in the long term. We no longer perform or recommend this procedure.