The cases of 96 patients (55 male and 41 female) with primary chondrosarcoma of the chest wall were reviewed. Ages ranged from 17 to 78 years (median, 53.5 years). The tumor involved the rib in 78 patients and the sternum in 18. Seventy-two patients had treatment at the Mayo Clinic, 28 by wide resection, 25 by local excision, and 19 by palliative excision. There was 1 operative death. Follow-up ranged from 1 to 46 years. Recurrent chondrosarcoma developed in 37 patients. All had local recurrence, and 14 also had metastases. Within 10 years, recurrence had developed in 50% of patients who had local excision and in 17% of patients who had wide resection. Ten-year chondrosarcoma survival (Kaplan-Meier) for patients treated by wide resection was 96%; by local excision, 65%; and by palliative excision, 14% (p less than 0.0001). Tumor grade, tumor diameter, tumor location, and date of operation all had a significant influence on survival. This report documents the natural history of chest wall chondrosarcoma and demonstrates that early wide resection is the treatment of choice.