Fig. 1

A 34-year-old male patient diagnosed with L1-3 chondrosarcoma (WBB stage: L1-3, sector 9–12, layer A-D) underwent en bloc resection with preservation of part of the vertebral body. The procedure involved a right retroperitoneal approach for initial tumor dissociation, followed by a posterior approach for sagittal resection of the involved vertebrae. Subsequently, a customized 3D-printed artificial vertebral body was implanted between T12 and L4. Preoperative images of the tumor are depicted in pictures a–c; pictures d–g show the specimen and its corresponding image; pictures h and i display postoperative images