Primary sarcomas of the jaw.

Nine cases of primary sarcoma of the jaw seen over a period of 14 years are presented. They consisted of four osteosarcomas, three fibrosarcomas, one myxosarcoma and one Ewing's sarcoma. The treatment of choice for osteosarcomas of the mandible is hemimandibulectomy with disarticulation at the temporomandibular joint. Bone graft reconstruction from the iliac crest should be done at a second stage. Palliative maxillectomy for extensive fibrosarcoma of the maxilla served to relieve one patient of local symptoms for more than a year. Myxosarcoma, a variant of fibrosarcoma, and Ewing's sarcoma of the jaw, are very rare conditions, and since these lesions are usually very extensive radiotherapy is the treatment of choice.