BackgroundRacial disparities persist in surgical outcomes after spine surgery for primary and metastatic cancers. Muscle flap closure of spinal defects after oncologic resection has been shown to reduce wound complication rate with favorable cost-effectiveness. It is currently unknown whether racial disparities may affect the reception of this treatment. MethodsSpinal surgery procedures for tumor resection and subsequent reconstruction were identified in the 2011-2022 National Surgical Quality Improvement Program databases. Cases were propensity score matched for covariates like age, comorbidities, number of vertebral levels reconstructed, and length of stay to isolate the predictive impact of race on reception of muscle flap closure (p<0.05). Results9,467 patients that underwent oncologic spine surgery and had known race and ethnicity were identified in the final cohort. Two hundred thirty-two (2.5%) cases included muscle flap closure during the index surgery. After matching (n=4,196), minority race/ethnicity was associated with lower rates of muscle flap closure (2.2%) than non-Hispanic White race/ethnicity (3.8%) (p=0.0037). Upon weighted univariate logistic regression, minority racial and ethnic identification also predicted lower likelihood of muscle flap closure (OR: 0.57, 95% CI: 0.52-0.63, p<0.001). Among patients who received muscle flap closure, overall rate of all, major, or minor thirty-day postoperative complications were not different depending on race and ethnicity (p>0.05). ConclusionThere are evident racial disparities in the reception of muscle flap closure after oncologic spine surgery. Further work may investigate the role of intersecting socioeconomic factors like insurance status and hospital characteristics. LAY SUMMARYMuscle flap closure is a surgical technique within plastic surgery that has been associated with lower rates of complications after spine surgery to remove tumors. Our study shows that minority racial and ethnic groups are less likely on average to receive muscle flap closure. Data availability statementThe data that support the findings of this study are publicly available.